METHODS: Caprine islets were isolated and purified. Islets were handpicked and the diameter of the islets was recorded using light microscopy. Viablility of the islets was analyzed by confocal microscopy. Insulin secretion assay was carried out and analyzed by ELISA.
RESULTS: When tested at 48 h after isolation, these small islets were 29.3% more viable compared to the large-sized islets. Large islets showed a high ratio (P
AIM: To investigate the beneficial effects of fish oil consumption on the progression of insulin resistance and pancreatic islet dysfunction in a rat model of diabetes.
METHODS: Diabetic rats model (n = 30) were divided into five groups and received; 1) NS injection + NS oral (normal control); 2) NS injection + 3 g/kg fish oil (fish oil control); 3) streptozotocin (STZ) injection + NS oral [diabetes control (DC)]; 4) STZ injection + 1 g/kg fish oil (DFO1); and 5) STZ injection + 3 g/kg fish oil (DFO3). Fasting blood insulin was analyzed by commercial rat insulin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; meanwhile, the determination of insulin sensitivity was calculated by homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and homeostatic model assessment of beta-cell function. A histological study was conducted on pancreas tissue using H and E staining.
RESULTS: Fish oil supplementation reduced hyperglycemia and ameliorated HOMA-IR in STZ-induced animal models indicating that fish oil supplementation improved insulin sensitivity. Furthermore, animals treated with fish oil at a dose of 3 g/kg (DFO3) showed an enhancement in pancreatic islets, which was displayed by less abnormal structures than DC animals. This could imply that the administration of fish oil, especially rich in bioactive omega-3 fatty acids effectively inhibits insulin resistance and restore islet of Langerhans alteration in rats injected with STZ.
CONCLUSION: Thus, the current study suggested that fish oil supplementation could support the treatment of diabetes but should not be considered as an alternative therapy.
METHODS: Forty healthy male SD rats were induced to diabetes with a single dose intra-peritoneal administration of STZ (60 mg/kg b.w.) - NAD (120 mg/kg b.w.). Diabetic rats were orally administered with 1 mL of pomegranate fresh juice (PJ) or 100 mg pomegranate seed powder in 1 mL distilled water (PS), or 5 mg/kg b.w. of glibenclamide every day for 21 days. Rats in all groups were sacrificed on day 22. The obtained data was analyzed by SPSS software (v: 22) using One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA).
RESULTS: The results showed that PJ and PS treatment had slight but non-significant reduction of plasma glucose concentration, and no impact on plasma insulin compared to diabetic control (DC) group. PJ lowered the plasma total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) significantly, and low-density lipoproteins (LDL) non-significantly compared to DC group. In contrast, PS treatment significantly raised plasma TC, LDL, and high-density lipoproteins (HDL) levels compared to the DC rats. Moreover, the administration of PJ and PS significantly reduced the levels of plasma inflammatory biomarkers, which were actively raised in diabetic rats. Only PJ treated group showed significant repairment and restoration signs in islets of Langerhans. Besides, PJ possessed preventative impact against 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals almost 2.5 folds more than PS.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that active constituents with high antioxidant properties present in PJ are responsible for its anti-hyperlipidemic and anti-inflammatory effects, likewise the restoration effect on the damaged islets of Langerhans in experimental rats. Hence, the pharmacological, biochemical, and histopathological profiles of PJ treated rats obviously indicated its helpful effects in amelioration of diabetes-associated complications.
METHODS: Human ADSCs from lipoaspirated abdominal fat tissue was differentiated into IPCs following a two-step induction protocol based on a combination of alternating high and low glucose, nicotinamide, activin A and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) for a duration of 3 weeks. During differentiation, histomorphological changes of the stem cells towards pancreatic β-islet characteristics were observed via light microscope and transmission electron microscope (TEM). Dithizone (DTZ) staining, which is selective towards IPCs, was used to stain the new islet-like cells. Production of insulin hormone by the cells was analyzed via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), whereas its hormonal regulation was tested via a glucose challenge test.
RESULTS: Histomorphological changes of the differentiated cells were noted to resemble pancreatic β-cells, whereas DTZ staining positively stained the cells. The differentiated cells significantly produced human insulin as compared to the undifferentiated ADSCs, and its production was increased with an increase of glucose concentration in the culture medium.
CONCLUSIONS: These initial data indicate that human lipoaspirated ADSCs have the potential to differentiate into functional IPCs, and could be used as a therapy to treat diabetes mellitus in the future.
METHODS: Caprine pancreatic tissues were collected from a local slaughterhouse and prior transported to the laboratory by maintaining the cold chain. Islets were obtained by a collagenase-based digestion and optimized isolation technique. Islet cell purity and viability were determined by dithizone and trypan blue staining, respectively. Islet clusters of different sizes were positively identified by staining methods and demonstrated 90% viability in the culture system. Following static incubation, an in vitro insulin secretion assay was carried out and analyzed by ELISA.
RESULTS: The islets remained satisfactorily viable for 5 days in the culture system following regular media changes. The current study has successfully optimized the isolation, purification and culture maintenance of caprine islets.
CONCLUSION: The successful yield, viability and functionality of islets isolated from the optimized protocol provide promising potential as an alternative source of islets for diabetes and transplantation researches.
METHODOLOGY: After collection and purification of caprine islets with Euro-Ficoll density gradients, islets were considered for viability and functionality procedures with DTZ (dithizone) staining and GSIST (glucose-stimulated insulin secretion test) subsequently. Batches of islet were selected for immunostaining and study through confocal microscopy and flow cytometry.
RESULTS: Histological sections of caprine pancreatic islets showed that α-cells were segregated at the periphery of β-cells. In caprine islets, α- and δ-cells remarkably were intermingled with β-cells in the mantle. Such cytoarchitecture was observed in all examined caprine pancreatic islets and was also reported for the islets of other ruminants. In both small and large caprine islets (< 150 and > 150 μm in diameter, respectively), the majority of β-cells were positioned at the core and α-cells were arranged at the mantle, while some single α-cells were also observed in the islet center. We evaluated the content of β-, α-, and δ-cells by confocal microscopy (n = 35, mean ± SD; 38.01 ± 9.50%, 30.33 ± 10.11%, 2.25 ± 1.10%, respectively) and flow cytometry (n = 9, mean ± SD; 37.52 ± 9.74%, 31.72 ± 4.92%, 2.70 ± 2.81%, respectively). Our findings indicate that the caprine islets are heterogeneous in cell composition. The difference could be attributed to species-specific interaction between endocrine cells and blood.
CONCLUSIONS: Comparative studies of islet architecture may lead to better understanding of islet structure and cell type population arrangement. These results suggest the use of caprine islets as an addition to the supply of islets for diabetes research.