Desgraz R, Bonal C, Herrera PL. β-cell regeneration: the pancreatic intrinsic faculty.
Trends Endocrinol Metab 2011;
22:34-43. [PMID:
21067943 DOI:
10.1016/j.tem.2010.09.004]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2010] [Revised: 09/27/2010] [Accepted: 09/27/2010] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Type I diabetes (T1D) patients rely on cumbersome chronic injections of insulin, making the development of alternate durable treatments a priority. The ability of the pancreas to generate new β-cells has been described in experimental diabetes models and, importantly, in infants with T1D. Here we discuss recent advances in identifying the origin of new β-cells after pancreatic injury, with and without inflammation, revealing a surprising degree of cell plasticity in the mature pancreas. In particular, the inducible selective near-total destruction of β-cells in healthy adult mice uncovers the intrinsic capacity of differentiated pancreatic cells to spontaneously reprogram to produce insulin. This opens new therapeutic possibilities because it implies that β-cells can differentiate endogenously, in depleted adults, from heterologous origins.
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