Organogenesis of endocrine pancreas from transplanted embryonic anlagen

The number of donor human pancreas organs that can be transplanted directly or used for islet of Langerhans isolation is limited. We and others have shown that it is possible to 'grow' new pancreatic tissue in situ by transplanting embryonic organ-specific pancreatic precursor cells. This technology takes advantage of the fact that selective development of islets takes place post transplantation of embryonic pancreas and that the developing organ can attract its blood supply from an appropriate vascular bed post transplantation, enabling the transplantation of pancreas in 'cellular' form. Whole pancreatic anlagen implanted into a host peritoneum develop into a novel organ consisting of functional islets of Langerhans surrounded by stroma or individual alpha and beta cells within omental fat. Transplantation of developing pancreas to achieve organogenesis of its endocrine components could lead to a novel treatment for diabetes mellitus. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.