Isolation, Culture and Induced Differentiation of Fetal Porcine Islet Derived Pancreatic Stem Cell

To isolate and culture the porcine pancreatic stem cells and investigate their function, the fetal porcine pancreatic stem cells were isolated by the method of suspending plus adhering culture. The isolated cells were then identified by immunohistochemical staining, and their culture viability measured through the MTT method in vitro. This induced them to differentiate into endocrine cells and detect their function. The isolated IPSCS did not express nestin, but expressed CK-19, a marker of ductal epithelia cells and α-actin, a smooth muscle marker, demonstrating the growth characteristics of ES-like cells, and strong proliferative ability, after 18 passages. They could excrete insulin, and showed ultrastructure changes after being induced. Porcine pancreatic stem cells can be isolated by this method, induced to form islet-like clusters, and can secret insulin.