1
|
Chen Z, Stoukides DM, Tzanakakis ES. Light-Mediated Enhancement of Glucose-Stimulated Insulin Release of Optogenetically Engineered Human Pancreatic Beta-Cells. ACS Synth Biol 2024; 13:825-836. [PMID: 38377949 PMCID: PMC10949932 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.3c00653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2023] [Revised: 01/27/2024] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024]
Abstract
Enhancement of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) in exogenously delivered pancreatic β-cells is desirable, for example, to overcome the insulin resistance manifested in type 2 diabetes or to reduce the number of β-cells for supporting homeostasis of blood sugar in type 1 diabetes. Optogenetically engineered cells can potentiate their function with exposure to light. Given that cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) mediates GSIS, we surmised that optoamplification of GSIS is feasible in human β-cells carrying a photoactivatable adenylyl cyclase (PAC). To this end, human EndoC-βH3 cells were engineered to express a blue-light-activated PAC, and a workflow was established combining the scalable manufacturing of pseudoislets (PIs) with efficient adenoviral transduction, resulting in over 80% of cells carrying PAC. Changes in intracellular cAMP and GSIS were determined with the photoactivation of PAC in vitro as well as after encapsulation and implantation in mice with streptozotocin-induced diabetes. cAMP rapidly rose in β-cells expressing PAC with illumination and quickly declined upon its termination. Light-induced amplification in cAMP was concomitant with a greater than 2-fold GSIS vs β-cells without PAC in elevated glucose. The enhanced GSIS retained its biphasic pattern, and the rate of oxygen consumption remained unchanged. Diabetic mice receiving the engineered β-cell PIs exhibited improved glucose tolerance upon illumination compared to those kept in the dark or not receiving cells. The findings support the use of optogenetics for molecular customization of the β-cells toward better treatments for diabetes without the adverse effects of pharmacological approaches.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zijing Chen
- Department
of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts 02155, United States
| | - Demetrios M. Stoukides
- Department
of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts 02155, United States
| | - Emmanuel S. Tzanakakis
- Department
of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts 02155, United States
- Department
of Developmental, Molecular and Cell Biology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, United States
- Graduate
Program in Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics and Pharmacology
and Drug Development, Tufts University School
of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, United States
- Clinical
and Translational Science Institute, Tufts
Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, United States
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Porter JM, Yitayew M, Tabrizian M. Renewable Human Cell Model for Type 1 Diabetes Research: EndoC- βH5/HUVEC Coculture Spheroids. J Diabetes Res 2023; 2023:6610007. [PMID: 38162632 PMCID: PMC10757655 DOI: 10.1155/2023/6610007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2023] [Revised: 11/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024] Open
Abstract
In vitro drug screening for type 1 diabetes therapies has largely been conducted on human organ donor islets for proof of efficacy. While native islets are the ultimate target of these drugs (either in situ or for transplantation), significant benefit can be difficult to ascertain due to the highly heterogeneous nature of individual donors and the overall scarcity of human islets for research. We present an in vitro coculture model based on immortalized insulin-producing beta-cell lines with human endothelial cells in 3D spheroids that aims to recapitulate the islet morphology in an effort towards developing a standardized cell model for in vitro diabetes research. Human insulin-producing immortalized EndoC-βH5 cells are cocultured with human endothelial cells in varying ratios to evaluate 3D cell culture models for type 1 diabetes research. Insulin secretion, metabolic activity, live cell fluorescence staining, and gene expression assays were used to compare the viability and functionality of spheroids composed of 100% beta-cells, 1 : 1 beta-cell/endothelial, and 1 : 3 beta-cell/endothelial. Monoculture and βH5/HUVEC cocultures formed compact spheroids within 7 days, with average diameter ~140 μm. This pilot study indicated that stimulated insulin release from 0 to 20 mM glucose increased from ~8-fold for monoculture and 1 : 1 coculture spheroids to over 20-fold for 1 : 3 EndoC-βH5/HUVEC spheroids. Metabolic activity was also ~12% higher in the 1 : 3 EndoC-βH5/HUVEC group compared to other groups. Stimulating monoculture beta-cell spheroids with 20 mM glucose +1 μg/mL glycine-modified INGAP-P increased the insulin stimulation index ~2-fold compared to glucose alone. Considering their availability and consistent phenotype, EndoC-βH5-based spheroids present a useful 3D cell model for in vitro testing and drug screening applications.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- James M. Porter
- Department of Biological and Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 0G4
| | - Michael Yitayew
- Department of Biological and Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 0G4
| | - Maryam Tabrizian
- Department of Biological and Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 0G4
- Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada H3A 1G1
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Karanth SS, Sun S, Bi H, Ye K, Jin S. Angiopoietins stimulate pancreatic islet development from stem cells. Sci Rep 2021; 11:13558. [PMID: 34193893 PMCID: PMC8245566 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-92922-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2020] [Accepted: 06/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
In vitro differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) into functional islets holds immense potential to create an unlimited source of islets for diabetes research and treatment. A continuous challenge in this field is to generate glucose-responsive mature islets. We herein report a previously undiscovered angiopoietin signal for in vitro islet development. We revealed, for the first time, that angiopoietins, including angiopoietin-1 (Ang1) and angiopoietin-2 (Ang2) permit the generation of islets from iPSCs with elevated glucose responsiveness, a hallmark of mature islets. Angiopoietin-stimulated islets exhibited glucose synchronized calcium ion influx in repetitive glucose challenges. Moreover, Ang2 augmented the expression of all islet hormones, including insulin, glucagon, somatostatin, and pancreatic polypeptide; and β cell transcription factors, including NKX6.1, MAFA, UCN3, and PDX1. Furthermore, we showed that the Ang2 stimulated islets were able to regulate insulin exocytosis through actin-filament polymerization and depolymerization upon glucose challenge, presumably through the CDC42-RAC1-gelsolin mediated insulin secretion signaling pathway. We also discovered the formation of endothelium within the islets under Ang2 stimulation. These results strongly suggest that angiopoietin acts as a signaling molecule to endorse in vitro islet development from iPSCs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Soujanya S Karanth
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Binghamton University, State University of New York (SUNY), Binghamton, NY, 13902, USA
| | - Shuofei Sun
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Binghamton University, State University of New York (SUNY), Binghamton, NY, 13902, USA
| | - Huanjing Bi
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Binghamton University, State University of New York (SUNY), Binghamton, NY, 13902, USA
| | - Kaiming Ye
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Binghamton University, State University of New York (SUNY), Binghamton, NY, 13902, USA.,Center of Biomanufacturing for Regenerative Medicine, Binghamton University, State University of New York (SUNY), Binghamton, NY, 13902, USA
| | - Sha Jin
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Binghamton University, State University of New York (SUNY), Binghamton, NY, 13902, USA. .,Center of Biomanufacturing for Regenerative Medicine, Binghamton University, State University of New York (SUNY), Binghamton, NY, 13902, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Drzazga A, Cichońska E, Koziołkiewicz M, Gendaszewska-Darmach E. Formation of βTC3 and MIN6 Pseudoislets Changes the Expression Pattern of Gpr40, Gpr55, and Gpr119 Receptors and Improves Lysophosphatidylcholines-Potentiated Glucose-Stimulated Insulin Secretion. Cells 2020; 9:E2062. [PMID: 32917053 PMCID: PMC7565006 DOI: 10.3390/cells9092062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Revised: 09/01/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The impaired spatial arrangement and connections between cells creating islets of Langerhans as well as altered expression of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) often lead to dysfunction of insulin-secreting pancreatic β cells and can significantly contribute to the development of diabetes. Differences in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) are noticeable not only in diabetic individuals but also in model pancreatic β cells, e.g., βTC3 and MIN6 β cell lines with impaired and normal insulin secretion, respectively. Now, we compare the ability of GPCR agonists (lysophosphatidylcholines bearing fatty acid chains of different lengths) to potentiate GSIS in βTC3 and MIN6 β cell models, cultured as adherent monolayers and in a form of pseudoislets (PIs) with pancreatic MS1 endothelial cells. Our aim was also to investigate differences in expression of the GPCRs responsive to LPCs in these experimental systems. Aggregation of β cells into islet-like structures greatly enhanced the expression of Gpr40, Gpr55, and Gpr119 receptors. In contrast, the co-culture of βTC3 cells with endothelial cells converted the GPCR expression pattern closer to the pattern observed in MIN6 cells. Additionally, the efficiencies of various LPC species in βTC3-MS1 PIs also shifted toward the MIN6 cell model.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna Drzazga
- Institute of Molecular and Industrial Biotechnology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Lodz University of Technology, Stefanowskiego 4/10, 90-924 Lodz, Poland; (E.C.); (M.K.)
| | | | | | - Edyta Gendaszewska-Darmach
- Institute of Molecular and Industrial Biotechnology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Sciences, Lodz University of Technology, Stefanowskiego 4/10, 90-924 Lodz, Poland; (E.C.); (M.K.)
| |
Collapse
|