Regeneration of the pancreatic β cell
Massimo Trucco
Massimo Trucco
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Review

Regeneration of the pancreatic β cell

Abstract

Type 1 diabetes is the result of an autoimmune attack against the insulin-producing β cells of the endocrine pancreas. Current treatment for patients with type 1 diabetes typically involves a rigorous and invasive regimen of testing blood glucose levels many times a day along with subcutaneous injections of recombinant DNA–derived insulin. Islet transplantation, even with its substantially improved outcome in recent years, is still not indicated for pediatric patients. However, in light of the fact that some regenerative capabilities of the endocrine pancreas have been documented and recent research has shown that human ES cell lines can be derived in vitro, this review discusses whether it is practical or even possible to combine these lines of research to more effectively treat young diabetic patients.

Authors

Massimo Trucco

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Figure 5

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Radiographic evaluation at 4 and 12 weeks after surgery. The critical-si...
Radiographic evaluation at 4 and 12 weeks after surgery. The critical-sized (i.e., non–spontaneously reparable) defect in the femora treated with bone marrow–derived stromal cells transfected with retro-BMP4 exhibited a notable bridging callus (i.e., the white mass between the 2 extremes of the fracture interval) at both 4 (A) and 12 (B) weeks after surgery. The defect in the femora treated with MDCs transfected with BMP4 had also developed a bridging callus at 4 (C) and 12 (D) weeks. No bone formation was radiographically evident in the control – i.e., femora treated with MDCs transfected with the LacZ gene – at both 4 (E) and 12 (F) weeks after surgery. Figure reproduced with permission from Langenbecks Archives of Surgery (55).