INTRAUTERINE TRANSPLANTATION OF ISOGENIC PANCREATIC-ISLETS IN EXPERIMENTAL DIABETIC RATS

The effect of intrauterine transplantation (IU group) as a potential i mmunologically privileged site on the diabetic state of the recipient was compared with that of conventional intraperitoneal transplantation (IP group) using Fischer 344 rats. Islets were isolated from the panc reata of normal rats and transplanted into the uterus and peritoneal c avity of the isogenic rats with experimental diabetes, which were trea ted with estradiol benzoate and progesterone. Although all the rats in both groups became normoglycemic within 4 days after transplantation, all of those in the IU group relapsed into a diabetic state up to the 20th day after transplantation. On the other hand, 6 of 8 rats in the IP group remained normoglycemic throughout the experimental period. W eight gain and diminution of urinary glucose excretion in the IU group were significantly lower than those in the IP group (P<0.01). The gly cosylated hemoglobin level in the IU group did not differ significantl y from that in the IP group, but the serum level of fructosamine in th e IU group was significantly higher than that in the IP group (P<0.01) . These results indicate that the response to fluctuations of blood gl ucose of islets in the uterine cavity is less than that of islets in t he peritoneal cavity. Histologically, islets were observed to be aggre gated in the uterine cavity, however the number of cells decreased mar kedly with time. Although this study demonstrated that blood glucose w as normalized by transplantation of islets into the uterine cavity of diabetic rats, long-term survival of the islets in this location was n ot obtained.