Abstract:
Degeneration of pancreatic islet beta cells is increasingly ranked as a key disease mechanism in type 2 diabetes, but it is not entirely clear what the underlying molecular processes might be and how they attack insulin production, ultimately causing type 2 diabetes [3, 4]. However, recent studies based on quantitative measurements in post mortem pancreatic tissue from humans with type 2 diabetes have reinforced earlier observations concerning the probable role of lowered beta cell numbers and pointed to a linkage between beta cell disappearance and beta cell apoptosis.
