The Ricordi Chamber and the Automated Method for Human Islet Isolation and Transplantation

40 Years of Global Impact (1985–2025)

For millions of people living with diabetes, restoring the body’s natural ability to produce insulin once seemed unreachable. For decades, scientists faced a fundamental obstacle: insulin-producing beta cells — the very cells destroyed by diabetes — were extraordinarily difficult to isolate alive from the human pancreas. Early techniques were harsh, inefficient, and unreliable, slowing scientific progress and keeping life-changing therapies out of reach.

That reality began to change forty years ago with one bold idea.

1964–1985 | The Challenge

The first report of islet isolation was published in 1964, describing the painstaking process of micro-dissecting islets one by one. Over the next two decades, isolating insulin-producing islet cells remained extremely difficult and often damaging. Methods relied on traumatic mechanical techniques — blenders, sieves, meat grinders, needles, and manual chopping — resulting in low yields of fragile, injured islets that were unsuitable for consistent research or clinical transplantation.

Despite growing scientific interest, progress remained slow. The field needed a fundamentally different approach.

1985 | A New Idea Takes Shape

After completing medical school at the University of Milan, Dr. Camillo Ricordi studied the limitations of existing islet isolation methods and believed a better solution was possible. His vision centered on a gentler, continuous process — one that could progressively disassemble the pancreas while preserving the integrity of insulin-producing islets.

The concept involved distending the donor pancreas with an enzyme solution through the exocrine ductal system and processing it within a digestion chamber under full immersion. As the pancreas gently broke down, intact islets would be released and immediately protected from further enzymatic damage, allowing for subsequent purification and use in research or transplantation.

Although promising, the University of Milan lacked the resources needed for development. Determined to move forward, Dr. Ricordi relocated to Washington University in St. Louis to work with islet transplant pioneer Dr. Paul E. Lacy. Initial skepticism delayed progress while Ricordi refined his approach using pre-clinical models.

1986 | The Breakthrough Night

One Friday evening, a poor-quality donor pancreas — deemed unsuitable for research — arrived in Dr. Lacy’s laboratory. After the lab cleared out, Ricordi retrieved the discarded organ and tested his method overnight.

When morning came, the microscope revealed what had long seemed impossible: healthy, viable insulin-producing islets isolated in unprecedented numbers.

The Ricordi Chamber was no longer a concept — it was a breakthrough.

1987–1988 | Patent and First Publication

A patent application was filed in June 1987, and in 1988 the first scientific paper describing the method was published in Diabetes. The publication introduced a revolutionary continuous processing system that minimized tissue damage while dramatically improving islet yield and quality.

The invention soon became known worldwide as the Ricordi Chamber, later recognized as the gold standard in human islet isolation and adopted by research and transplant centers across the globe.

1989–1990 | From Innovation to Clinical Reality

Unprecedented isolation outcomes made clinical application possible. While research groups worldwide began using the Ricordi Chamber, Ricordi returned to Milan to initiate clinical trials. When institutional hesitation delayed progress, transplant legend Dr. Thomas E. Starzl invited Ricordi to the University of Pittsburgh, providing the opportunity to move forward.

On January 10, 1990, purified human islets isolated using the Ricordi Chamber were infused into the liver of a 15-year-old patient — effectively engineering a “hepato-pancreas.” Several patients in this initial series achieved prolonged insulin independence following intrahepatic islet infusion.

The results were published in The Lancet on August 18, 1990, marking a defining moment in the history of diabetes treatment.

1993 | A New Chapter at the Diabetes Research Institute

In 1993, Dr. Ricordi was recruited to the Diabetes Research Institute (DRI) at the University of Miami, where he led the Cell Transplant Center and later the entire institute for three decades. The Ricordi Chamber enabled the DRI and its collaborators worldwide to refine protocols, improve patient outcomes, and establish the scientific foundation for modern islet transplantation.

During this period, Ricordi made a defining decision: he renounced commercial rights to his invention, ensuring that scientists everywhere could access the technology.

“The Ricordi Chamber is not a single invention — it is a sharing with the world.”
— Dr. Camillo Ricordi

2000 | The Edmonton Protocol and Open Science

Dr. Ricordi trained research teams across North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia — including the Edmonton Islet Transplant Team led by Dr. James Shapiro. In 2000, the Edmonton Protocol demonstrated that islet transplantation could consistently achieve insulin independence using improved immunosuppression strategies and multiple donor organs.

“The Ricordi Chamber approach to isolate human islets was completely enabling for us,” said Dr. Shapiro. “It wouldn’t have been possible to achieve the clinical results we achieved without it.”

Inspired by Banting’s declaration that “Insulin belongs to the world,” Ricordi’s commitment to open science helped reignite global optimism for curing type 1 diabetes.

2000–2025 | Expanding the Frontiers

From multicenter trials to FDA Phase III studies, extra-hepatic transplants, and 20-year survival outcomes, the Ricordi Chamber has remained foundational. Human islets isolated using this method have powered more than 1,500 scientific publications and supported breakthroughs in:

The chamber’s impact even extended beyond science, appearing in an episode of Grey’s Anatomy— a rare moment when a real-world medical breakthrough reached mainstream culture.

2025–26 | 40 Years of Global Impact

Today, the Ricordi Chamber is used in more than 50 countries and stands among the most influential inventions in the history of diabetes research. It remains the universal gold standard for islet isolation in both research and clinical applications.

More than a scientific instrument, the Ricordi Chamber represents a philosophy rooted in open science, collaboration, and an unwavering commitment to curing diabetes.

 
Concluding Reflections

Throughout four decades, Dr. Ricordi’s work has been guided by three core principles:

Want to learn more? Watch additional videos highlighting Dr. Ricordi’s 40+ years of impact on the diabetes community on our YouTube channel in the “Dr. Camillo Ricordi” playlist.