Pituitary Cotransplantation Significantly Improves the Performance, Insulin Content, and Vascularization of Renal Subcapsular Islet Grafts

摘要

Because the pituitary contains hormones with β-cell trophic activity, we evaluated whether cotransplanta- tion of pituitary tissue with pancreatic islets might be beneficial for islet graft function and survival. Strepto- zotocin diabetic nude mice were transplanted under the kidney capsule with 150 handpicked islets alone or mixed with two diced pituitaries and were then followed for 4 weeks. Mice transplanted with mixed islet/pitu- itary grafts had higher levels of circulating prolactin (PRL) than mice transplanted with islets only, while serum cortisol, growth hormone, and follicle-stimulating hormone were similar in the two groups.