Pancreas regeneration

The pancreas is made from two distinct components: the exocrine pancreas, a reservoir of digestive enzymes, and cells the endocrine islets, the source of the vital metabolic hormone insulin. Human islets possess limited regenerative ability-loss of islet beta-cells in diseases such diabetes as type 1 diabetes requires therapeutic intervention. The leading strategy for restoration of beta-cell mass is through the generation and transplantation of new beta-cells derived from human pluripotent stem cells. Other approaches. include stimulating endogenous. beta-cell proliferation, reprogramming non-beta-cells to beta-like cells, and. harvesting islets from genetically. engineered animals. Together these approches form a rich pipeline of therapeutic development for pancreatic regeneration.