Regenerative Medicine: Clinical Islet Transplantation

Abstract

Islet transplantation is used clinically for replacement of insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells in a subset of patients with type 1 diabetes. Since the publication of successful islet transplantation by the Edmonton group in 2000, over 750 islet transplants have been performed in more than 30 centers worldwide, with ever-improving success rates. However, islet transplantation is limited by the short supply of suitable donor pancreases, as well as the need for immunosuppression to combat rejection of the allograft. This review covers strategies to prevent rejection of islets, and methods are being developed to visualize graft loss and improve survival and function of transplanted beta cel..