Messenger RNA Delivery to Islet β-cells Using Conjugated Lipid Nanoparticles

This Prism data file contains original data by figure for our manuscript entitled "Messenger RNA Delivery to Islet β-cells Using Conjugated Lipid Nanoparticles." These data test the hypothesis that lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) can be engineered to deliver RNA cargo to pancreatic β cells with enrichment over other cell types, and that such delivery can be enhanced through peptide conjugation and used to modulate autoimmune diabetes–relevant pathways. The dataset contains all quantitative measurements underlying the figures in the accompanying manuscript, including flow cytometry analyses, biodistribution measurements, histological quantification, and diabetes incidence outcomes. Data were generated from experiments performed in mouse models (C57BL/6J and NOD mice), primary human islets from multiple donors, human β-cell lines, and a human islet xenotransplant model.

Specifically, the data show that the base LNP formulation delivers RNA cargo to β cells in both mouse and human systems, with β-cell–enriched uptake relative to non–β-cell populations. In mice, conjugation of LNPs with enhanced glucagon-like peptide-1 (eGLP-1) further increases β-cell enrichment, whereas in human β cells both conjugated and unconjugated LNPs perform similarly, consistent with species-specific receptor biology. Functional delivery is demonstrated by expression of PD-L1 following mRNA delivery, which in NOD mice is associated with reduced insulitis and delayed diabetes onset. Data were analyzed using GraphPad Prism with appropriate statistical tests as described in the manuscript. Together, this dataset enables independent evaluation of β-cell targeting efficiency, species-specific differences in uptake, and the functional consequences of RNA delivery, and can be reused to benchmark or compare future β-cell–directed RNA delivery platforms.