Small things matter: Lack of extra-islet β-cells in Type 1 diabetes

Recent 3D analyses reported an abundance of small β-cell-rich endocrine objects (EOs) in the human pancreas. Here, we used archival, immunolabelled 2D pancreas sections to assess morphological EO parameters in donors with or without type 1 diabetes (T1D), varying in age and disease duration. We confirm that abundant small, insulin-positive EOs are present in donors without diabetes and comprise most of the pancreatic endocrine area in early life. Small EOs are virtually absent in individuals with T1D, and this effect is most pronounced in children diagnosed with T1D in their earliest years. We conclude that extra-islet β-cells are impacted in T1D development, and their early loss is a characteristic feature. This finding has important implications that will inform future screening and treatment strategies for T1D.
, This repository contains de-identified data from human subjects. caseIDs for each donor were generated by the respective biobanks referenced in this dataset. No more than 3 indirect donors identified were used publicised to preserve anonymity. Further information on study participant details is as follows:

Pancreas tissue from human organ donors with or without T1D was procured for the Network for Pancreatic Organ Donors with Diabetes (nPOD) program at the University of Florida (RRID: SCR_014641, https://www.jdrfnpod.org) and processed in accordance with the established standard operating procedures of the nPOD/OPPC as approved by the University of Florida Institutional Review Board (IRB201600029) with strict adherence to the guidelines of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) and federal regulations, with informed consent obtained from each donor’s legal representative.

The Exeter Archival Diabetes Biobank (EADB) is held with ethical permission from the West of Scotland Researc..., , ## Small things matter: Lack of extra-islet β-cells in Type 1 diabetes

Dryad DOI: [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.6q573n6b5](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.6q573n6b5)

\*** Manuscript information ***

Manuscript title: Small things matter: Lack of extra-islet β-cells in Type 1 diabetes

Authors: Kathryn Murrall, Teifion Luckett et al.

Corresponding author: Sarah Richardson

Corresponding author email. [[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail])

README created on: 2025-08-14

\*** Abbreviations ***

EO = endocrine object: comprised of a single or contiguous clusters of endocrine cells (labelled with either Chromogranin A or Insulin/Glucagon)

CgA = Chromogranin A

Ins/Gluc = Insulin Glucagon

T1D = Type 1 Diabetes

\*** Research scope ***

Restricted tissue availability, particularly from donors in the first decade of life, has limited our understanding of the human pancreas and how it develops. The early changes that may underpin conditions such as type 1 diabetes, an...