Protocol to generate and utilize pancreatic tissue slices to study endocrine and exocrine physiology in situ from mouse and human tissue

STAR Protoc. 2023 Sep 15;4(3):102399. doi: 10.1016/j.xpro.2023.102399. Epub 2023 Jun 30.

Abstract

Pancreatic tissue slices allow functional investigations under close physiological conditions in situ. This approach is particularly advantageous for studying infiltrated and structurally damaged islets as found in T1D. More importantly, slices allow studying the interplay between endocrine and exocrine compartments. We here describe how to perform agarose injections, tissue preparation, and slice procedure for mouse and human tissue. We then describe in detail how to use the slices to perform functional studies using hormone secretion and calcium imaging as readouts. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Panzer et al. (2022).1.

Keywords: Biotechnology and Bioengineering; Cell Biology; Tissue Engineering.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Calcium
  • Histological Techniques
  • Humans
  • Mice
  • Pancreas*
  • Pancreatic Hormones*
  • Sepharose

Substances

  • Pancreatic Hormones
  • Calcium
  • Sepharose