“This is a new idea that the microbiome could be a source for signals for the development of the pancreas,” Guillemin said. “This is the first time that anyone has made a connection between the microbiome and the development of beta cells.”
Often fishermen exaggerate about the size of their catch. Such tall tales, although humorous need to be taken with a grain of salt. But this story about fish, and diabetes, although seemingly epic, is rooted in fact, not fiction. Sure, it may sound unbelievable, a protein discovered by researchers at the University of Oregon have in the guts of zebra fish appears to have the power to boost insulin production. The zebra fish protein prompts beta cells in the pancreas to grow and multiply when the fish are in the larval stage.
Beta cells are necessary to the production of insulin, which regulates blood sugar. The zebra fish discovery could provide a new approach to combatting Type 1 which is distinguished by a loss of beta cells.
Researchers are motivated, now, to figure how gut bacteria, impact beta cell development. Karen Guillemin, a University of Oregon and co-author of the zebra fish study said that. We’re realizing that the gut bacteria is a rich source for discovering new biomolecules that have enormous potential for manipulating and promoting our health.
After Guillemin and her team isolated one group of fish and deprived them of specific gut bacteria during the first week of life, they discovered that the fish did not experience the same growth of beta cells as the fish that were exposed to the bacteria. Following their initial findings, they began hunting for a bacterial protein that could stimulate beta cells on its own. They narrowed down the list to 165 factors that could stimulate beta cell growth. They purified the protein and then provided it to the bacteria-free fish and noted that beta cells began to grow. They labeled the protein Beta Cell Expansion Factor A, or BefA.
“This is a new idea that the microbiome could be a source for signals for the development of the pancreas,” Guillemin said. “This is the first time that anyone has made a connection between the microbiome and the development of beta cells.”
The next phase for scientist will be to determine the mechanism by which BefA stimulates beta cells, before testing the protein in other animals, including humans.
