Human islets for research: progress, challenges, and suggestions

Abstract

Human and rodent islets are generally considered to differ in their morphology, composition, signaling molecules, proliferation, and functions. Therefore, the availability of human islets for basic research can improve the understanding of the pathophysiology of diabetes. Islets are used for transplantation to restore beta cell function from diabetes. Although human islet distribution programs for research exist around the world, those availability has been limited in Japan. Here I describe backgrounds and the current status of human islet research. This review also highlights unresolved questions about human islets and proposes future research on human islets in Japan.