The effects of free fatty acid-free bovine serum albumin and palmitate on pancreatic β-cell function

Pancreatic β-cells release insulin in response to fluctuations in plasma glucose, amino acids, and free fatty acids (FFA). Clonal cell lines and isolated islets serve as essential early models for studying the impact of nutrients and evaluating potential therapies to address β-cell dysfunction. Acute and chronic changes in FFA levels have been shown to have positive and negative effects on β-cell function both <i>in vivo</i> and <i>in vitro</i>. A key problem in comparing islet lipid studies from different laboratories is that a wide variety of methods are used to isolate, culture, and assess islet function. The current study compares bovine serum albumin (BSA) types and lipid preparation methods in clonal 832/13 cells and human islets. Changing the percentage and culture conditions when using FFA-free BSA can negatively affect β-cell function compared to regular BSA. Preparing palmitate with FFA-free BSA can rescue insulin secretion compared to treating cells alone with FFA-free BSA. Different methods of preparing palmitate can have unique effects on insulin secretion. Overall, interpreting the effects of lipids on β-cell function is complicated by a number of variables that need to be controlled for in islet experiments.