At Ace Therapeutics, we provide the scientific community with novel tools that accelerate diabetes research, opening new frontiers in the therapeutic development pipeline. We establish novel functional "immortalized" pancreatic β-cell lines for our clients that will revolutionize the investigation of the complex mechanisms behind this debilitating metabolic disorder.
With the increase in incidence among the population, pancreatic β-cell biology and islet transplantation have gradually become new hotspots of research. However, because of the difficulties in obtaining a large number of functional islet cells and ensuring cell homogeneity, the research related to islets is limited, further hindering the development of new therapies for diabetes mellitus. The establishment of an immortalized pancreatic β-cell line may thus provide a valid means to solve the above problems and a reliable tool for studying insulin secretion mechanisms, the etiology of diabetes, and pancreatic islet transplantation.
Fig. 1. Potential mechanisms underlying the stability of EndoC-βH cell lines and the reversion of their immortalization. (Scharfmann R, et al., 2019)
At Ace Therapeutics, our innovative genetic engineering capabilities allow us to customize highly and reversibly immortalized pancreatic β-cell models for customers. These advanced cellular tools empower our research partners to establish the ideal in vitro platform for their diabetes investigations. Our immortalized β-cell lines maintain the critical functional properties of native pancreatic islet cells while offering the key advantage of unlimited proliferative potential. This ensures a consistent, renewable source of research material, allowing for robust, reproducible studies.
We utilize a recombinant retroviral vector containing SV40 Tag and hTERT cDNAs to transfect human islet β-cells to establish human islet β cell lines. These cells secrete insulin in response to glucose stimulation and non-glucose secretagogues and express proteins characteristic of β-cells.
We hybridized and fused NEDH rat pancreatic islet β-cells with RIN-m5F cells by electrofusion to establish functional cell lines. These cell lines can be passed on stably for more than 50 generations and have strong insulin secretion ability and GSIS, which can be used as a good model for studying insulin secretion.
We generate conditionally immortalized human β cell lines through Cre-mediated excision of the immortalizing transgenes. This cell line can be massively amplified in vitro. After amplification, transgenic genes were effectively removed upon Cre expression, leading to the significant enhancement of β cell-specific features. These cells highly represent human β cells and are valuable tools for further analysis of human β cells.
Ace Therapeutics' immortalized pancreatic β-cell line models serve as versatile tools for a wide range of diabetes-focused research applications:
By collaborating with Ace Therapeutics, our research partners gain access to high-quality pancreatic β-cell models, accelerating their progress toward groundbreaking discoveries and transformative solutions in diabetes research. Please contact us for more information about how our services can be customized to meet your exact needs.
Ace Therapeutics has a team of experts in the field of endocrine and metabolic research, aiming to provide innovative preclinical contract research solutions to cope with diabetes and its complications. We provide customized solutions and technical support, enabling the transformation of promising concepts into innovative treatments, thus accelerating the drug development process of diabetes.
