Nur Shabrina Amirruddin, Blaise Su Jun Low, Kok Onn Lee, E Shyong Tai, Adrian Kee Keong Teo, New insights into human beta cell biology using human pluripotent stem cells, Seminars in Cell & Developmental Biology, 2019, ISSN 1084-9521, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.semcdb.2019.11.004.
Abstract:
Pancreatic β-cells are responsible for maintaining glucose homeostasis. Therefore, their dysregulation leads to diabetes. Pancreas or islet transplants can be used to treat diabetes but these human tissues remain in short supply. Significant progress has now been made in differentiating human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) such as human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) or human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) into pancreatic β-like cells for potential cell replacement therapy. Additionally, these hPSC-derived β-like cells represent a new invaluable model for studying diabetes disease mechanisms. Here, we review the use of hPSC-derived β-like cells as a platform to model various types of defects in human β-cells in diabetes, comparing them against existing animal models, ex vivo human islets and human β-cell line. We also discuss how hPSC-derived β-like cells are being used as a platform for screening novel therapeutic compounds. Last but not least, we evaluate the strengths and limitations of this human cell-based platform as an avenue to study and reveal new insights into human β-cell biology.
License type:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Funding Info:
The authors thank members of the Teo laboratory for the critical reading of this manuscript. N.S.A. and B.S.J.L. are supported by the NUS Research Scholarship. T.E.S. and A.K.K.T. are supported by the NMRC OF-LCG/DYNAMO. A.K.K.T. is further supported by the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), A*STAR, A*STAR JCO Career Development Award (CDA) 15302FG148, NMRC OFYIRG16may014, A*STAR ETPL Gap Funding ETPL/18-GAP005-R20H, Lee Foundation Grant SHTX/LFG/002/2018, Skin Innovation Grant SIG18011, FY2019 SingHealth Duke-NUS Surgery Academic Clinical Programme Research Support Programme Grant, Precision Medicine and Personalised Therapeutics Joint Research Grant 2019, and the Industry Alignment Fund – Industry Collaboration Project (IAF-ICP).