AUTHOR=Balboa Diego , Iworima Diepiriye G. , Kieffer Timothy J. TITLE=Human Pluripotent Stem Cells to Model Islet Defects in Diabetes JOURNAL=Frontiers in Endocrinology VOLUME=12 YEAR=2021 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/endocrinology/articles/10.3389/fendo.2021.642152 DOI=10.3389/fendo.2021.642152 ISSN=1664-2392 ABSTRACT=

Diabetes mellitus is characterized by elevated levels of blood glucose and is ultimately caused by insufficient insulin production from pancreatic beta cells. Different research models have been utilized to unravel the molecular mechanisms leading to the onset of diabetes. The generation of pancreatic endocrine cells from human pluripotent stem cells constitutes an approach to study genetic defects leading to impaired beta cell development and function. Here, we review the recent progress in generating and characterizing functional stem cell-derived beta cells. We summarize the diabetes disease modeling possibilities that stem cells offer and the challenges that lie ahead to further improve these models.