Sugar Solution

After a meal, insulin floods around the body helping our cells absorb excess sugar. This vital process starts in the pancreas where islets – clusters of endocrine cells – squirt the chemical out into the bloodstream. But how pancreatic cells first bunch together into islets is mysterious – cloudy fats in our organs make such events difficult to watch under a microscope. Peering inside a transparent zebrafish, though, reveals vital clues. As some of the pancreatic cells (red) naturally develop into insulin-producing beta cells (blue), researchers watch what happens next. The islet cells develop finger-like projections that reach out towards nearby neighbours. Later in development these may act as bridges, bringing pancreatic cells together and forming the islets. Further studies may help to replace or repair islets in human patients with type 1 diabetes, where these precious structures are often destroyed by the body’s own immune system.

Written by John Ankers

John Ankers

Writer

A former researcher in systems biology, John is now an online biology tutor and professional coach supporting the wellbeing of scientists and NHS professionals. He's writing, too, of course.

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• Image by Robin Kimmel, Institute of Molecular Biology, University of Innsbruck
• Institute of Molecular Biology/CMBI, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
• Image copyright held by Robin Kimmel
• Research published in Development, February 2018