Characterization of collagenase blend enzymes for human islet transplantation.

Background: Efficient islet isolation represents a necessary requirement for successful islet transplantation as a treatment for type 1 diabetes. The choice of collagenase for pancreas digestion is critical for the isolation outcome, and Liberase is the most widely used enzyme, although large intra-batched variability in activity and efficiency has been observed.

Methods: The aim of this study was to characterize Liberase components and their relative role in pancreas digestion.