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Tissue Engineering

Tissue Engineering - Poster Session D

Poster BB18 - An oxygenated bioartificial pancreas device for treating type 1 diabetes

Friday, October 25, 2024
3:30 PM - 4:30 PM EST
Location: Exhibit Hall E, F & G

Introduction:  Cell replacement therapy holds promise as a potential remedy for type 1 diabetes; however, its clinical applications are limited due to immune rejection. Cell encapsulation emerges as a potential strategy to mitigate immune rejection while facilitating the exchange of essential elements such as nutrients, oxygen, glucose, and insulin. Nonetheless, a significant challenge in conventional strategy lies in inadequate oxygen tension within encapsulation systems due to the limited availability of oxygen at the transplantation site and the absence of direct vascularization for encapsulated cells. To address this issue, we have developed a novel microencapsulation device incorporating an implantable electrochemical oxygen generator.

Materials and

Methods:  Our cell encapsulation device consists of two primary components: an implantable electrochemical oxygen generator (iEOG) and a cell compartment made of a semi-permeable fibrous membrane designed for immunoprotection. To evaluate the effects of oxygenation on the viability of INS-1 cell spheroids or human pancreatic islets, we incubated oxygenated and non-oxygenated devices under 1% O2 conditions for 24 hours. The in vivo efficacy of the device was assessed using an allogenic rat model.

Results, Conclusions, and Discussions: In vitro results demonstrated that oxygenation effectively maintained the viability and functionality of INS-1 cell spheroids and human pancreatic islets, even at relatively high cell densities. In the allogeneic rat model, oxygenated devices successfully reversed diabetes, while animals with non-oxygenated devices remained hypoglycemic. These findings suggest that our oxygenated encapsulation device has the potential to improve the outcomes of cell therapy for type 1 diabetes.

Acknowledgements (Optional):