Aims/hypothesis Islet vascular fibrosis may play an important role in the progression of type
2 diabetes, but there are no mouse models allowing detailed mechanistic studies to …

Aims/hypothesis Rapamycin, part of the immunosuppressive regimen of the Edmonton
protocol, has been shown to inhibit vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) production …

Insulin-producing β-cells constitute the majority of the cells in the pancreatic islets.
Dysfunction of these cells is a key factor in the loss of glucose regulation that characterizes …

Background Inflammation followed by fibrosis is a component of islet dysfunction in both
rodent and human type 2 diabetes. Because islet inflammation may originate from …

Islet transplantation has been hampered by loss of function due to poor revascularization.
We hypothesize that co-transplantation of islets with human embryonic stem cell-derived …

Protection and restoration of a functional β-cell mass are fundamental strategies for
prevention and treatment of diabetes. Consequently, knowledge of signals that determine …

Endothelial cells are known to secrete various antiproliferative and vasodilating factors.
Although injury of endothelial cells has been postulated as an initial trigger of the …

The human insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) and insulin genes are located within the same
genomic region. Although human genomic studies have demonstrated associations …

Obesity-linked type 2 diabetes is a disease of insulin resistance combined with pancreatic β-
cell dysfunction. Although a role for β-cell mass in the pathogenesis of obesity-linked type 2 …

A critical shortage of donor pancreata currently prevents the development of a universal cell‐
based therapy for type I diabetes. The ex vivo expansion of insulin‐producing β‐cells offers …