Islet Transplantation

At UCSF’s Islet and Cellular Production Facility (ICPF), researchers have embarked on a promising new treatment for diabetes: transplanting insulin-producing islet cells from donated pancreases into the livers of patients. Once transplanted, it is hoped, the islet cells will begin producing insulin again.

While this sounds rather straightforward, harvesting and then transplanting islet is a long process—and one that must be done with the utmost of care and precision. Read on to learn how UCSF’s team of researchers completes this delicate procedure.