Pancreatic stem cells

• US 20050277190A1
• Filed: 03/07/2005
• Published: 12/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Derek Van Der Kooy, Raewyn Seaberg, Simon Smukler
• Original Assignee: Derek Van Der Kooy, Raewyn Seaberg, Simon Smukler
• Inventors: Van Der Kooy, Derek, Seaberg, Raewyn, Smukler, Simon
• Application Number:
  US11/072,630
• Publication Number:
  US 20050277190A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 435/366
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 35/12 Materials from mammals; Compositions comprising non-specified tissues or cells; Compositions comprising non-embryonic stem cells; Genetically modified cells vaccines or medicinal preparations containing antigens or antibodies A61K39/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61P 1/18 for pancreatic disorders, e.g. pancreatic enzymes
• CPC Class Codes: A61P 25/00 Drugs for disorders of the nervous system
• CPC Class Codes: A61P 5/48 of the pancreatic hormones
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2500/90 Serum-free medium, which may still contain naturally-sourced components
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2501/105 Insulin-like growth factors [IGF]
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2501/11 Epidermal growth factor [EGF]
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2501/115 Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF, FGF-2)
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2501/415 Wnt; Frizzeled
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2501/42 Notch; Delta; Jagged; Serrate
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2503/02 Drug screening
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2506/22 from pancreatic cells
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 5/0618 Cells of the nervous system
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 5/0619 Neurons
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 5/0622 Glial cells, e.g. astrocytes, oligodendrocytes; Schwann cells
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 5/0678 Stem cells; Progenitor cells; Precursor cells

Abstract

Pancreatic progenitor cells isolated from the pancreas of a mammal. The invention also includes pancreatic cells or neural cells differentiated from the pancreatic progenitor cells.

Claims

1. Clonal pancreatic stem cells isolated from the pancreas of a mammal.

2. Clonal pancreatic stem cells, pancreatic cells and/or neural cells produced from the cells of claim 1.

3. The cells of claim 2, wherein the pancreatic cells comprise at least one of alpha cells, beta cells, delta cells, acinar cells and stellate cells.

4. The cells of claim 2, wherein the neural cells comprise at least one of astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and neurons.

5. The cells of claim 1, which proliferate in the presence of growth factors, Wnt signaling activators or Notch signaling activators.

6. The cells of claim 5, wherein the growth factors comprise EGF and FGF2.

7. The cells of claim 5, wherein the Wnt signaling activator comprises BIO.

13. A method of prophylaxis or treatment of a disease, disorder or abnormal state of the pancreas in a subject, comprising administering to the subject the pancreatic stem cells or pancreatic cells of claim 2.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the disease, disorder or abnormal physical state is selected from the group consisting of type I or type II diabetes, pancreatitis, pancreatic degeneration and cancers of the pancreas.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising implanting the cells into the pancreas, liver or kidney of the subject.

17. A method of prophylaxis or treatment of a disease, disorder or abnormal physical state of the nervous system in a subject, comprising administering to the subject the pancreatic stem cells or neural cells of claim 2.

18. A pharmaceutical composition comprising the cells of claim 2 and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, diluent or excipient.

19. A method for identifying a compound for modulating a beta cell to increase or reduce insulin secretion by the beta cell, comprising

introducing the compound to a cell culture comprising beta cells differentiated from the cells of claim 1,

contacting the beta cells with glucose, and

determining whether the beta cells secrete increased or reduced insulin in response to the glucose, wherein increased insulin secretion indicates that the compound increases insulin secretion by the beta cell and reduced insulin secretion indicates that the compound reduces insulin secretion by the beta cell.

8. A method for producing clonal stem cell populations from a pancreatic tissue of a mammal, comprising:

a) dissociating all or part of the tissue into single cells,

b) culturing the cells for a time period sufficient that each proliferative pancreatic stem cell has repeatedly divided to produce a corresponding clonal cell population.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising differentiating the cells of one of the clonal stem cell populations into pancreatic cells and/or neural cells.

10. The method of claim 9, comprising, prior to the differentiating step, culturing the clonal stem cell population in the presence of growth factors, Wnt signaling activators and/or Notch signaling activators.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the pancreatic cells comprise at least one of alpha cells, beta cells, delta cells, acinar cells and stellate cells

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the neural cells comprise at least one of astroyctes, oligodendrocytes, and neurons.

16. A method of treating diabetes or other disease, disorder or abnormal physical state of the pancreas comprising differentiating pancreatic stem cells into beta cells and administering the beta cells to a subject, wherein the beta cells secrete insulin in response to glucose.