Islet isolation and purification from inbred Wuzhishan miniature pigs.

BACKGROUND

To investigate the applicability of inbred Wuzhishan (WZS) miniature pigs for porcine islet isolation and purification.

METHODS

Islet isolation and purification was conducted on adult (1-yr-old), male inbred WZS miniature pigs and age- and sex-matched market pigs obtained from a local slaughterhouse (control group). Pancreata were excised, and islet isolation was carried out by static digestion and discontinuous gradient centrifugation. Viability of the purified islets was tested by radioimmunochemistry assay to measure glucose-induced insulin release in culture and transplantation in an in vivo study.

RESULTS

The anatomical structure of the WZS miniature pig pancreas was more similar to the human pancreas than that of the market pig. Islet yield of the WZS miniature pigs' pancreata was significantly higher than that of the market pigs (6078 ± 1105 vs. 2500 ± 625 islet equivalents [IEQ]/g). In vitro study demonstrated that the islets isolated from WZS miniature pigs were viable, as they efficiently responded to glucose challenge. In vivo study showed that the islets from both groups could cure the diabetic rat with the survival varied from 3 to 5 days (median, 4.3 days) and 2-4 days (median, 3.6 days) in experimental group and control group, respectively.

CONCLUSION

Wuzhishan miniature pig pancreas may be a feasible source of islets for xenotransplantation.