Establishment of encapsulated human dental pulp stem cell-derived insulin producing cells (hDPSC-IPCs) for translational stem cell based diabetes therapy

Abstract

Current approach for diabetes treatment remained several adverse events varied from gastrointestinal to life-threatening symptoms. Regenerative therapy regarding Edmonton protocol has been facing serious limitations involving protocol efficiency and safety. This led to the study for alternative insulin-producing cell (IPC) resource and transplantation platform. In this study, evaluation of encapsulated human dental pulp stem cell (hDPSC)-derived IPCs (hDPSC-IPCs) by alginate (ALG) and pluronic F127-coated alginate (ALGPA) was performed. The results showed that ALG and ALGPA preserved hDPSC viability and allowed glucose and insulin diffusion in and out. ALG- and ALGPA-encapsulated hDPSC-IPCs maintained viability for at least 336 hours and sustained pancreatic endoderm marker (NGN3), pancreatic islet markers (NKX6.1, MAF-A, ISL-1, GLUT-2 and INSULIN), and intracellular PRO-INSULIN and INSULIN expressions for at least 14 days. Functional analysis revealed a glucose-responsive C-peptide secretion of ALG- and ALGPA-encapsulated hDPSC-IPCs at 14 days post-encapsulation. In conclusion, ALG and ALGPA encapsulations efficiently preserved the viability and functionality of hDPSC-IPCs in vitro and could be the potential transplantation platform for further clinical application.