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Comment
. 2012 Jul;61(7):1656-8.
doi: 10.2337/db12-0336.

The in vivo β-to-β-cell chat room: connexin connections matter

Paolo Meda  1
Affiliations
Comment

The in vivo β-to-β-cell chat room: connexin connections matter

Paolo Meda. Diabetes. 2012 Jul.
No abstract available

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Figures

FIG. 1.
FIG. 1.
In control islets, Cx36 channels allow for the exchange of electrotonic currents and cytosolic molecules between coupled β-cells. Islets null for Cx36 no longer feature this coupling, which causes the loss of the intercellular synchronization of glucose-induced Ca2+ transients and of pulsatile insulin release, as well as an extended off-response of β-cells. These alterations are associated with a decrease in the expression of the Ins genes and in both first and second phases of GSIS, which result in impaired glucose tolerance of the Cx36-null mice. It is still unclear (?) whether loss of Cx36 also sufficiently raises the basal secretion of insulin to alter the circulating levels of the hormone. Whether similar changes also take place after the temporary uncoupling of β-cells, resulting from the closure of Cx36 channels, is still largely undetermined (nd). Many aspects of β-cell function also remain to be investigated in β-cells forced to overexpress Cx36. Strikingly, these cells are more resistant to in vivo conditions eliciting apoptosis, in marked contrast to Cx36-null β-cells, which are sensitized to such conditions.
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