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World J Stem Cells. Jan 26, 2015; 7(1): 174-181
Published online Jan 26, 2015. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v7.i1.174
Advances and challenges in the differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into pancreatic β cells
Essam M Abdelalim, Mohamed M Emara
Essam M Abdelalim, Mohamed M Emara, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Qatar Foundation, Education City, PO Box 5825, Doha, Qatar
Author contributions: Abdelalim EM conceived and designed the manuscript, generated the figure, wrote the manuscript, and revised the manuscript; Emara MM wrote the manuscript and revised the manuscript.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Essam M Abdelalim, PhD, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute, Qatar Foundation, Education City, PO Box 5825, Doha, Qatar. emohamed@qf.org.qa
Telephone: +974-44546432 Fax: +974-44541770
Received: July 28, 2014
Peer-review started: July 28, 2014
First decision: September 4, 2014
Revised: September 16, 2014
Accepted: September 18, 2014
Article in press: December 16, 2014
Published online: January 26, 2015
Processing time: 170 Days and 3.7 Hours
Abstract

Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) are able to differentiate into several cell types, including pancreatic β cells. Differentiation of pancreatic β cells depends on certain transcription factors, which function in a coordinated way during pancreas development. The existing protocols for in vitro differentiation produce pancreatic β cells, which are not highly responsive to glucose stimulation except after their transplantation into immune-compromised mice and allowing several weeks for further differentiation to ensure the maturation of these cells in vivo. Thus, although the substantial improvement that has been made for the differentiation of induced PSCs and embryonic stem cells toward pancreatic β cells, several challenges still hindering their full generation. Here, we summarize recent advances in the differentiation of PSCs into pancreatic β cells and discuss the challenges facing their differentiation as well as the different applications of these potential PSC-derived β cells.

Keywords: Embryonic stem cells; Induced pluripotent stem cells; Insulin-secreting cells; In vitro; In vivo; Differentiation; Maturation

Core tip: Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) including induced PSCs and embryonic stem cells are valuable sources for cell replacement therapies and disease modeling of diabetes. Although several studies reported the differentiation of PSCs into pancreatic β cells in vivo, still their response to glucose is very limited in vitro due to their immature nature. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge about the differentiation of PSCs into pancreatic β cells and discuss the challenges facing the differentiation and application of PSC-derived β cells.