Generating new pancreas from old.
Pancreas regeneration after tissue damage is a key response to pancreatic injury, involving pancreatic duct progenitor cells and intra-islet precursor cells. Surgical removal of the pancreas, duct obstruction by cellophane wrapping and bone marrow-derived stem cell transplantation act as inductive stimuli, leading to pancreas regeneration. The exact role of growth and differentiation factors regulating pancreatic beta-cell mass remains unknown. Here, I will attempt to integrate recent findings and speculate on the factors that trigger this fascinating response, wherein the pancreas responds to a deficit in cell mass and undergoes new islet formation, leading to restoration of normal beta-cell mass. I will also discuss recent advances in regenerating endocrine pancreatic cells, which could affect stem cell-based approaches to treating diabetes mellitus.
Hardikar
Anandwardhan A
AA
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Bldg 50/Room 4128, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. anand_hardikar@nih.gov
D000818:Animals; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007515:Islets of Langerhans / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology*; D012038:Regeneration / Q000502:physiology*