Development of a 3D human in vitro model of pancreatic beta cell health

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Diabetes mellitus is a major health issue with ~390 million people affected worldwide (IDF Diabetes Atlas 6th edition,2014). Most diabetics are type 2 (T2D), typically characterised by the loss of pancreatic beta cell function and beta cellmass and peripheral insulin resistance. Whilst current therapies do provide some level of glycaemic control, they do notprevent the debilitating long-term consequences of the disease. In the on-going search for better treatments, there is now areal focus on strategies that aim to preserve the function of remaining beta cells or replenish beta cell mass.To support this new focus of diabetes research, this project aims to develop a human 3D in vitro model of pancreatic betacell health / beta cell proliferation. No such commercial model currently exists. The model will be developed using nativehuman islets and Asterand Bioscience's (Asterand's) proprietary 3D cell culture platform. The consortium will then explorewhether a more sustainable cell source can be utilised (eg., iPSC-derived beta cells) and ultimately whether theestablished model can be miniaturised using 3D printing. The 3D printing work is to achieve highly accurate spatialdispensing of beta cells onto membranes in well plates that the currently commercial platform is based on. The effects ofdispensing conditions on cell viability and functions will be investigated to identify an optimal processing condition fordispensing beta cells. In addition, how cell population influences cell function will be studied by dispensing cell sampleswith different sizes. The proposed cell printing solution combined with technologies developed by two industrial partners willcreate a unique manufacturing advantage allowing the production of off-the-shelf products for drug discovery.