ArticleDiabetologia2014
Are we overestimating the loss of beta cells in type 2 diabetes?
Article in Diabetologia, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 85 papers.
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Who cites it
85 citing papers in PubMed, 136 citations in OpenAlex.
- Single-cell mRNA-regulation analysis reveals cell type-specific mechanisms of type 2 diabetes.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Functional recovery of islet β cells in human type 2 diabetes: Transcriptome signatures unveil therapeutic approaches.Science advances · 2025Article
- Single-cell analysis of oxidative phosphorylation protein expression in pancreatic islets in type 2 diabetes.The Journal of endocrinology · 2025Article
- Osteocalcin induces phosphorylation of FOXO1 in human beta-cells and restores insulin expression under hyperglycemic conditions.Research square · 2025Article
- Mechanistic insights and approaches for beta cell regeneration.Nature chemical biology · 2025Review
- Intrapancreatic adipocytes and beta cell dedifferentiation in human type 2 diabetes.Diabetologia · 2025Article
- Resident memory CD8(+) T cells dominate lymphoid immune cell population in human pancreatic islets in health and type 2 diabetes.BMJ open diabetes research & care · 2025Article
- Detection of Insulin in Insulin-Deficient Islets of Patients with Type 1 Diabetes.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Diabetes Mellitus: Exploring Biomarkers, Complications, and Therapeutic Strategies with a Spotlight on Cyanobacterial Bioactive Compounds - A Comprehensive Review.Current diabetes reviews · 2025Review
- Post translational modification regulation of transcription factors governing pancreatic β-cell identity and functional mass.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2025Review
- Teplizumab's immunomodulatory effects on pancreatic β-cell function in type 1 diabetes mellitus.Clinical diabetes and endocrinology · 2024Review
- β-cell neogenesis: A rising star to rescue diabetes mellitus.Journal of advanced research · 2024Review
- β-Cell Heterogeneity and Plasticity.Advances in anatomy, embryology, and cell biology · 2024Review
- Article
- Global proteomics reveals insulin abundance as a marker of human islet homeostasis alterations.Acta physiologica (Oxford, England) · 2023Article
- Noncanonical CDK4 signaling rescues diabetes in a mouse model by promoting β cell differentiation.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2023Article
- Review
- Beta Cell Dysfunction in Youth- and Adult-Onset Type 2 Diabetes: An Extensive Narrative Review with a Special Focus on the Role of Nutrients.Nutrients · 2023Review
- Discovery of IHMT-MST1-39 as a novel MST1 kinase inhibitor and AMPK activator for the treatment of diabetes mellitus.Signal transduction and targeted therapy · 2023Article
- Molecular Genetics of Abnormal Redox Homeostasis in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
25 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
14 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
aims/hypothesisPrevious work has demonstrated that beta cell amount (whether measured as beta cell mass, beta cell volume or insulin-positive area) is decreased in type 2 diabetes; however, recent findings suggest that mechanisms other than death may contribute to beta cell failure in this disease. To better characterise beta cell mass and function in type 2 diabetes, we performed morphological, ultra-structural and functional studies using histological samples and isolated islets.
methodsPancreases from ten non-diabetic (ND) and ten matched type 2 diabetic organ donors were studied by insulin, glucagon and chromogranin A immunocytochemistry and electron microscopy (EM). Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion was assessed using isolated islets and studies were performed using independent ND islet preparations after 24 h exposure to 22.2 mmol/l glucose.
resultsImmunocytochemistry showed that the fractional islet insulin-positive area was lower in type 2 diabetic islets (54.9 ± 6.3% vs 72.1 ± 8.7%, p < 0.01), whereas glucagon (23.3 ± 5.4% vs 20.2 ± 5.3%) and chromogranin A (86.4 ± 6.1% vs 89.0 ± 5.5%) staining was similar between the two groups. EM showed that the proportion of beta cells in type 2 diabetic islets was only marginally decreased; marked beta cell degranulation was found in diabetic beta cells; these findings were all reproduced after exposing isolated ND islets to high glucose. Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion was 40–50% lower from type 2 diabetic islets (p < 0.01), which again was mimicked by culturing non-diabetic islets in high glucose. CONCLUSIONS/
interpretationThese results suggest that, at least in subgroups of type 2 diabetic patients, the loss of beta cells as assessed so far might be overestimated, possibly due to changes in beta cell phenotype other than death, also contributing to beta cell failure in type 2 diabetes.
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