Abstract

Immunosuppressive drugs are routinely used to provide tolerance after whole pancreas and islet cell transplantations. While they are essential in inhibiting graft rejection, little is known about their effect on islet function and β-cell viability. In this study, we report that tacrolimus, sirolimus, and mycophenolic acid, when added to cultures of freshly isolated human islets, induce a downregulation of the synthesis and secretion of insulin. These functional changes are associated with decreased islet cell viability. All three agents induce a decrease of intracellular levels of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL, with an increased level of Smac, indicating that they are capable of promoting a downregulation of anti-apoptotic factors and an accumulation of pro-apoptotic mediators. Transduction of islet cells with the anti-apoptotic gene XIAP prevents the negative effects of these drugs on the function and viability of islets. XIAP-infected cells show a higher expression of phospho-CREB (cAMP-responsive element binding protein) and a reduced level of Smac, resulting in a significant reduction of apoptotic cells and a preservation of the glucose-dependent secretion of insulin. In conclusion, the present study demonstrates that genetically modified human islets expressing XIAP are resistant to the negative effects of immunosuppressive drugs on insulin secretion and cell viability.