HUMAN ISLETS FOR RESEARCH-We currently supply human islets to both the academic and corporate communities for their research related to diabetes. We pride ourselves on providing the highest quality islets, which we have been able to produce by using our proprietary media (PIM-Prodo Islet Media)
PRODO ISLET MEDIA (PIM)™- Our media is a cGMP product and has been designed to increase the viability and purity of the cells, from the initial recovery to the stage where the islets are ready for study and experiments. Our media is capable of long-term culturing, of up to 21 days, without loss of purity and viability.
OUR SERVICES-Prodo Labs is capable of performing many services on a contract basis. Some of these services include performing assays, animal isolations and islet testing.
RESEARCH-Working in conjunction with the Scharp-Lacy Research Institute, Prodo Labs is committed to performing research which could lead to a cure for diabetes. Led by Dr. David Scharp, MD, our company continues to break new ground in battling this debilitating disease.
About Us
Prodo Laboratories, Inc was founded in Sept 2006 by David Scharp, MD to develop a biotechnology company that provides diabetes research services and products to both the academic and corporate diabetes research communities, as well as pursue its own research lines. Prodo Labs began processing its first human pancreas in July 2007 to provide human islets for research to diabetes investigators. Prodo Labs contracts directly with biotech and pharmaceutical companies needing human islets for their research, related to new diabetes drugs and treatments. Prodo Labs also contracts with the Scharp-Lacy Research Institute, a not-for-profit diabetes research institute, also founded by Dr. Scharp, that contracts with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) to provide the Institute human islets they then distribute to JDRF funded investigators. These contracts continue to provide high quality human islets for research.
In the fall of 2007, Prodo Labs created its first tissue culture media for research use, PIM(S), that was specifically formulated to provide improved human islet tissue culture survival and function for longer periods of time after isolation (2 to 21 days). At the same time, Prodo also created an islet transport medium, PIM(T), that was developed to reduce the toxicity to islets during transport than can occur using whole organ transport media. In the fall of 2008, Prodo Labs released cGMP versions of these two media that can be used in clinical trials (see Products – GMP Products). PIM (R), our recovery medium, was also created to speed up the recovery process, post purification. Islets begin to round up after 12 hours in this medium.
In 2008, Prodo Labs began its first research contract with a pharmaceutical company to utilize its primary human islets as test agents for contract testing of human islet function with new diabetes drug candidates. These tests were performed in vitro as well as in vivo. In addition, Prodo Labs is able to test the functionality of newly developed insulin-producing cells against primary islets, using a variety of secretagogues and inhibitors of known pathways of islet cell function. These new cell candidates can also be implanted in different sites of normal and diabetic animals with physiologic and pathophysiologic parameters as measured outcomes.
Prodo's physical space is designed to handle both contract research, as well as our internal research. The laboratories consist of a larger human islet processing facility with appropriate laminar flow hoods, centrifuges, COBE 2991, tissue culture incubators, and specific pancreas processing equipment; a Quality Control lab for all of the testing and assays; a smaller non-human islet processing facility for rodents, pigs, and cynomolgus monkey pancreas processing; a microbiology lab; two combined laminar flow clean rooms for reagent and media manufacturing and special tissue culture products; and a water room with glassware washer, dryer, autoclaves, water treatment equipment and an associated room for storing sterile packs and equipment.
Currently, Prodo Labs has just surpassed the 16 million islets shipped mark. We have also launched our cGMP islet media products and are looking forward to continuing to add to the products that are currently available in the diabetes community. Our goal is and always has been to provide the highest quality products to aid in the treatment of the complications associated with diabetes.