beta cells Archives
Keeping beta cells “fit”
Jul. 9, 2020—Vanderbilt cell biologists are defining the factors that help beta cells in the pancreas stay healthy, secrete insulin and prevent diabetes initiation and progression.
Building a pancreas
Jan. 17, 2019—Vanderbilt investigators are defining the genetic programs that control the development of pancreatic beta cells — studies that could inform new cellular or regenerative therapies for diabetes.
Beta cell biomarker findings may speed diabetes research
Nov. 29, 2018—Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have identified a biomarker for insulin-producing beta cells. Their finding, reported this month in the journal Cell Metabolism, could lead to improved ways to study and treat diabetes.
Cellular calcium handling in diabetes
Sep. 28, 2017—Potassium channels in a cellular organelle regulate calcium flux and appear to play a critical role in pancreatic beta cell health.
Therapeutic targets for diabetes
May. 3, 2017—Vanderbilt investigators have identified novel regulators of insulin-producing beta-cell proliferation and survival, suggesting new targets for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
Making human beta cells reproduce
Dec. 8, 2016—A new method developed at Vanderbilt will speed the search for potential therapeutics for diabetes: compounds that stimulate the replication of insulin-producing beta cells.
Fighting type 2 diabetes with FGF1
Nov. 18, 2015—The growth factor FGF1 induces the growth of new insulin-producing beta cells and may help treat type 2 diabetes.
New therapeutic target for diabetes
Aug. 20, 2015—The factor FoxM1 increases the proliferation and function of insulin-producing beta cells, making it an attractive therapeutic target for diabetes.
Boosting beta cells in diabetes
Apr. 20, 2015—New findings suggest that it might be possible to treat diabetes by regenerating insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas.
CaMKII enhances insulin secretion
May. 14, 2014—The protein CaMKII acts as a calcium sensor in a positive feedback pathway that enhances glucose-stimulated insulin secretion.
Searching for beta cell stimulators
Jan. 13, 2014—Vanderbilt researchers describe a new technique for identifying factors that stimulate the proliferation of pancreatic beta cells – factors that might offer therapeutic options for diabetes.
Pancreas cells full of potential
Feb. 18, 2013—Adult cells in the pancreas can return to a less mature state – and then become a different cell type, like the beta cells that secrete insulin.
