Diabetes recovery by age-dependent conversion of pancreatic δ-cells into insulin producers.

ABSTRACT: Total or near-total loss of insulin-producing β-cells occurs in type 1 diabetes. Restoration of insulin production in type 1 diabetes is thus a major medical challenge. We previously observed in mice in which β-cells are completely ablated that the pancreas reconstitutes new insulin-producing cells in the absence of autoimmunity. The process involves the contribution of islet non-β-cells; specifically, glucagon-producing α-cells begin producing insulin by a process of reprogramming (transdifferentiation) without proliferation. Here we show the influence of age on β-cell reconstitution from heterologous islet cells after near-total β-cell loss in mice. We found that senescence does not alter α-cell plasticity: α-cells can reprogram to produce insulin from puberty through to adulthood, and a

SUBMITTER: Chera S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4209186 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature