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Updated: Jun 22, 2026
In situ Quantification of Pancreatic Beta-cell Mass in Mice
Published on: June 7, 2010
Bioluminescence imaging in mouse models quantifies beta cell mass in the pancreas and after islet transplantation
John Virostko1, Aramandla Radhika, Greg Poffenberger
1Vanderbilt University, Institute of Imaging Science, Nashville, TN, USA.
Purpose:
We developed a mouse model that enables non-invasive assessment of changes in beta cell mass.
Procedures:
We generated a transgenic mouse expressing luciferase under control of the mouse insulin I promoter [mouse insulin promoter-luciferase-Vanderbilt University (MIP-Luc-VU)] and characterized this model in mice with increased or decreased beta cell mass and after islet transplantation.
Results:
Streptozotocin-induced, diabetic MIP-Luc-VU mice had a progressive decline in bioluminescence that correlated with a decrease in beta cell mass. MIP-Luc-VU animals fed a high-fat diet displayed a progressive increase in bioluminescence that reflected an increase in beta cell mass. MIP-Luc-VU islets transplanted beneath the renal capsule or into the liver emitted bioluminescence proportional to the number of islets transplanted and could be imaged for more than a year.
Conclusions:
Bioluminescence in the MIP-Luc-VU mouse model is proportional to beta cell mass in the setting of increased and decreased beta cell mass and after transplantation.
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