Islet cells from human embryonic stem cells

Patent Number: 7033831

This patent covers a method of generating insulin producing cells from human embryonic stem cells through the process of first incubating the human embryonic stem cells with Activin A, and then subsequently incubating the cells with nicotinamide. Activin is a peptide involved in wound healing and morphogenesis, wherease nicotinamide is a type of vitamine B3 and improves beta cell functions. The patent has 3 independent claims. The first covers the culturing of ES cells first in Activin A, then nicotinamide as a method of generating insulin producing cells (note they dont restrict themselves by calling them islets...there could be other cells producing insulin I guess). The second covers also a method of producing insulin secreting cells, this time through first growing embryoid bodies, then treating the embryoid bodies with a TGF-b antagonist together with one or more mitogens (to stimulate proliferation), and subsequently culturing the cells in nicotinamide. The third one is relatively similar to the second independent claim, with the exception that the starting material is embryonic stem cells, not embryoid bodies.

View this patent on the USPTO website.