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Updated: Oct 14, 2025
High Resolution 3D Imaging of the Human Pancreas Neuro-insular Network
Published on: January 29, 2018
Single-cell analysis of the human pancreas in type 2 diabetes using multi-spectral imaging mass cytometry
Minghui Wu1, Michelle Y Y Lee2, Varun Bahl3
1Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Institute for Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; The Second Clinical College, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510720, China.
Abstract:
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) is a chronic age-related disorder characterized by hyperglycemia due to the failure of pancreatic beta cells to compensate for increased insulin demand. Despite decades of research, the pathogenic mechanisms underlying T2D remain poorly defined. Here, we use imaging mass cytometry (IMC) with a panel of 34 antibodies to simultaneously quantify markers of pancreatic exocrine, islet, and immune cells and stromal components. We analyze over 2 million cells from 16 pancreata obtained from donors with T2D and 13 pancreata from age-similar non-diabetic controls. In the T2D pancreata, we observe significant alterations in islet architecture, endocrine cell composition, and immune cell constituents. Thus, both HLA-DR-positive CD8 T cells and macrophages are enriched intra-islet in the T2D pancreas. These efforts demonstrate the utility of IMC for investigating complex events at the cellular level in order to provide insights into the pathophysiology of T2D.
