Pancreatic Progenitors: There and Back Again

Trends Endocrinol Metab. 2019 Jan;30(1):4-11. doi: 10.1016/j.tem.2018.10.002. Epub 2018 Nov 28.

Abstract

Adult pancreatic regeneration is one of the most contentious topics in modern biology. The long-held view that the islets of Langerhans can be replenished throughout adult life through the reactivation of ductal progenitor cells has been replaced over the past decade by the now prevailing notion that regeneration does not involve progenitors and occurs only through the duplication of pre-existing mature cells. Here we dissect the limitations of lineage tracing (LT) to draw categorical conclusions about pancreatic regeneration, especially in view of emerging evidence that traditional lineages are less homogeneous and cell fates more dynamic than previously thought. This new evidence further suggests that the two competing hypotheses about regeneration are not mutually exclusive.

Keywords: dedifferentiation; ductal cells; human pancreatic progenitor cells; islet regeneration; type 1 diabetes.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cell Lineage / physiology*
  • Humans
  • Islets of Langerhans / physiology*
  • Pancreas / physiology*
  • Regeneration / physiology*
  • Stem Cells / physiology*