Transcriptional profiling of pancreatic beta cells during maturation and with function-inactivating mutations

Islet beta-cells from newborn mammals need a maturation process to become mature functional beta cells. The detailed molecular mechanisms were not completely understood. This study was designed to reveal the dynamic gene expression changes during pancreatic beta-cell maturation in postnatal mice. We also want to understand how genetic mutations that impair beta-cell function change the genetic networks involved in the beta-cell maturation process. For these aims, pancreatic beta cells were isolated at P1 islets based on the expression of a MipeGFP transgene in a genetic background with pancreatic specific inactivation of Myt1, Myt1L, and St18 (denoted as MytDelpanc; MipeGFP).