
Here, Thomas was enjoying good company in Oxford at the 3rd Joint EASD Islet and Beta-Cell Workshop. He also did a good job presenting a poster on our work on alginate encapsulation. Lise Bjørkhaug Gundersen, Thomas Aga Legøy, Marie Holm…
Cell-identity switches, in which terminally differentiated cells are converted into different cell types when stressed, represent a widespread regenerative strategy in animals, yet they are poorly documented in mammals. In mice, some glucagon-producing pancreatic α-cells and somatostatin-producing δ-cells become insulin-expressing…
One temporary short-term position is now available! The project aims to develop and employ (i) an innovative in vivo system allowing the differentiation, monitoring, retrieval, characterization and modulation of MODY-iPSC-derived β-cells; (ii) methods for characterizing the cellular processes and molecular…
The mechanisms that restrict regeneration and maintain cell identity following injury are poorly characterized in higher vertebrates. Following β-cell loss, 1-2% of the glucagon-producing α-cells spontaneously engage in insulin production in mice. Here we explore the mechanisms inhibiting α-cell plasticity.…
Chakravarthy et al. dissect the mechanisms maintaining α cell identity and reveal that simultaneous inactivation of the DNA methyltransferase Dnmt1 and the transcription factor Arx in adult mice drives the conversion of α- to β-like cells. In human T1D islets, glucagon+ cells lose DNMT1 and ARX expression and express β cell markers.
Here, we discuss the latest findings on pancreas and islet cell plasticity upon physiological, pathological and experimental conditions of stress. Understanding the mechanisms involved in cell reprogramming will allow the development of new strategies for the treatment of diabetes, by exploiting the intrinsic regeneration capacity of the pancreas.