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β-cell proliferation is the major source of new pancreatic β cells

Nature Clinical Practice Endocrinology & Metabolism volume 2, pages 242–243 (2006)Cite this article

A large body of evidence shows that new insulin-producing pancreatic β cells are formed during adult life. Identifying the source of these cells could have profound implications for the design of regenerative therapies for type 1 diabetes. Numerous studies have proposed that new β cells are generated by the differentiation of adult stem cells or progenitor cells, thought to reside in pancreatic ducts, acini, islets of Langerhans, or even in the bone marrow or spleen. Here I present arguments supporting an alternative model—that postnatal β-cell expansion and turnover result from proliferation of pre-existing differentiated β cells.

Proliferation of insulin-producing β cells is readily detectable in the normal pancreas.1 Although the basal rate of division is low, there is a significant increase in proliferation under certain conditions—for example, in insulin resistance—suggesting the existence of regulatory mechanisms.1 Consequently, a stem-cell hypothesis must accommodate the fact that β cells can produce more β cells. Any presumptive adult pancreatic stem cells would, therefore, act to supplement the considerable proliferative capacity of pre-existing β cells.

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Acknowledgements

The author is grateful to D Melton, B Stanger, J Rajagopal, and R Kulkarni for helpful comments. Research in Y Dor's laboratory is supported by a career development award from the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and by grants from the NIH (Beta Cell Biology Consortium), D-Cure, and the Israeli Science Foundation.

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  1. senior lecturer at the Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem, Israel

    Yuval Dor

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Correspondence to Yuval Dor.

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Dor, Y. β-cell proliferation is the major source of new pancreatic β cells. Nat Rev Endocrinol 2, 242–243 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/ncpendmet0187

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