Support is requested for a Keystone Symposia conference entitled Islet Biology: From Gene to Cell to Micro- Organ, organized by Drs. Patrick MacDonald, Wen-hong Li, Anna Gloyn and Anette-Gabriele Ziegler. The conference will be held in Santa Fe, New Mexico from January 27-31, 2020. Recent years have seen great strides in understanding pancreatic endocrine islet cells. Spurred by new and emerging technologies, we are making discoveries about the impact of genetic variation on islet cells; how islet cell subpopulations differ; communication between islet cells and with the local environment, including components of the immune system; and how these interact to effect islet loss and dysfunction. A more integrated understanding of these processes will lead to important insights into diabetes and its treatment. Connecting researchers in the complimentary fields of genomics, immunology, islet cell function, and single- cell biology will be crucial to realizing this. One of the goals of this Keystone conference is to promote greater integration in our approaches to studying islet biology - spanning from genes, to single cells, to islets as micro- organs, and to the interaction of these with their local environment. Conference participants will learn about new methods and technological approaches among islet-biology investigators. This conference will also help to facilitate the development of new collaborations among attendees. We anticipate that this conference will highlight the challenges and potential new solutions in bringing integrated approaches to islet biology for the advancement of diabetes-related knowledge.
Diabetes represents a major global burden affecting millions of adults; most forms of diabetes result entirely or in part from the dysfunction or destruction of hormone-secreting pancreatic islets of Langerhans, where a significant proportion of known genetic risk for the disease resides. While pancreatic islet ?- and ?-cells regulate metabolism in health and diabetes by secreting glucagon and insulin, much remains to be understood about the physiology of these cells and mechanisms underlying their (dys)function, survival or death. By connecting researchers in the complimentary fields of genomics, immunology, islet cell function, and single-cell biology, this Keystone conference will help to promote greater integration in our approaches to studying islet biology spanning from genes, to single cells, to islets as micro-organs, and to the interaction of these with their local environment.
