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Updated: Nov 11, 2025

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Leprdb Mouse Model of Type 2 Diabetes: Pancreatic Islet Isolation and Live-cell 2-Photon Imaging Of Intact Islets
Published on: May 11, 2015
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Islet organoid as a promising model for diabetes
Xiaofei Zhang1,2, Zhuo Ma1,3, Eli Song4,5
1National Laboratory of Biomacromolecules, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China.
Protein & Cell
|March 22, 2021
Summary
Stem cell-derived islet organoids offer promising models for diabetes research, recapitulating human islet development. Further improvements are needed to enhance their maturity and functionality for authentic disease modeling and regenerative therapies.
Area of Science:
- Stem Cell Biology
- Endocrinology
- Regenerative Medicine
Background:
- Authentic diabetes disease models are crucial but limited, especially for recapitulating human pancreatic islet abnormalities.
- Current models struggle to fully replicate the complex development, structure, and function of human islets under pathological conditions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review advances and challenges in generating human pluripotent stem cell-derived islet organoids.
- To explore the potential of islet organoids as disease models for diabetes and for regenerative therapies.
Main Methods:
- Focus on the generation of human pluripotent stem cell-derived islet organoids.
- Review of existing literature on islet organoid development and applications.
Main Results:
- Islet organoids faithfully recapitulate islet development in vitro, providing biomimetic materials similar to native islets.
- They hold promise for modeling islet function, understanding diabetes mechanisms, and serving as in vitro models for viral infections like SARS-CoV-2.
Conclusions:
- Islet organoids are valuable tools for diabetes research, drug screening, and potential autologous transplantation.
- Further optimization is required to improve the maturity, heterogeneity, and functionality of current islet organoids to serve as authentic disease models.

