Thursday, May 5, 2022
Researchers with ATP-Bio, an NSF-funded Engineering Research Center headquartered at the University of Minnesota, have developed a new way of preserving pancreatic islet cells that may lead to improved treatment options for diabetes. Transplantation of pancreatic islet cells can cure for diabetes, but is limited by insufficient supply and inability to store islet cells before use. These barriers must be overcome to allow on-demand treatment. The new research, published by Nature Medicine, details a new method of islet cryopreservation that ensures long-term, quality-controlled preservation of islets. The study was led by John Bischof, PHD, and Erik Finger, MD, PhD. ATP-Bio is a Consortium member center.