http://www.betacell.org/news/ News and Events of the Beta Cell Biology Consortium Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:08:47 +0000 en-us Copyright 2010, Beta Cell Biology Consortium http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=117 http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=117 Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 The Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolic Diseases Subcouncil of the NIDDK’s National Advisory Council is soliciting comments on the current draft of the Diabetes Research Strategic Plan entitled “Advances and Emerging Opportunities in Diabetes Research: A Strategic Planning Report of the Diabetes Mellitus Interagency Coordinating Committee.”  The draft Strategic Plan can be accessed on the NIDDK website at: http://diabetesplan.niddk.nih.gov .  The Strategic Plan is being developed under the auspices of the Diabetes Mellitus Interagency Coordinating Committee (DMICC) that is chaired by the NIDDK/NIH and includes representatives from several NIH Institutes and other Federal agencies.  At this time, the DMICC is seeking final “public comment.” from the entire community of investigators with an interest in diabetes and/or its complications. Please e-mail comments to DKDRSPCoordinator@mail.nih.gov and note the page and line numbers to which your comments refer.  You can also FAX comments to (301) 897-9587 (to the attention of Carina May, the Hill Group; in the subject line of the fax, please add “Diabetes Research Strategic Plan”), or submit them online (see the website for instructions).  Comments will be accepted until March 31, 2010.   Thank you in advance for your input into this important document, which will help guide future efforts in diabetes research. . . . . http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=115 http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=115 Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 We are pleased to announce several significant enhancements to the BCBC and BCBC Genomics websites as "Version 3.7". GENE NETWORK VISUALIZATION The interactive gene network graph and underlying data include the following improvements: User Interface: Ability to export the graph as tab-delimited and graphML-based text files, User interface improvement for edge (relationship) selection, Extended information in Selection Details panel. Underlying Data: Computationally inferred gene relationships have been added to the database, derived from the two studies recently made public. Relationships extracted from Zaret (Nat Rev Genet, 2008) have been added to the database. Finally evidence codes for relationships have been expanded to use OBO Evidence, rather than the more restricted GO evidence codes. The quickest way to access it is to go a gene page of interest, such as the mouse Pdx1 gene page, and click on the network graph link shown. GENOMICS STUDIES New Studies: Transcription profiling of mouse pancreatic islets on day 14.5 of pregnancy (Rieck et al., Molecular Endocrinology, 2009) The goal of this study is to systematically uncover pathways and factors underlying the islet's proliferative response to pregnancy in vivo, because these targets might be exploited in the treatment of diabetes. Meta analysis of gene expression in human islets after in vitro expansion (Kutlu et al., Physiological Genomics, 2009). The goal of this study is to test three different protocols to expand human pancreatic islets in culture to understand the nature of the changes that occur in the cells. Expansion was followed by attempts to re-differentate back to islets. [BCBC only] Transcriptome profiling of e11.25 mouse pancreas: comparison between Ngn3-/- and Ngn3-/- ; Pdx1::Ngn3ER TM pancreatic epithelium (Grapin-Botton lab). BCBC Studies Now Publicly Available: Gene expression profiling of Nkx2-2 Mutant and Wild-Type - e12.5 and e13.5 Pancreata (Anderson et al., BMC Developmental Biology, to appear). http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=113 http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=113 Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 Jackson Laboratories is now distributing the Rudi Jaenisch derived NOD/ShiLtJ mouse ES cells (Hanna J, Markoulaki S, Mitalipova M, Cheng AW, Cassady JP, Staerk J, Carey BW, Lengner CJ, Foreman R, Love J, Gao Q, Kim J, Jaenisch R. Metastable pluripotent states in NOD-mouse-derived ESCs. Cell Stem Cell. 2009. http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=110 http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=110 Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 The Beta Cell Biology Consortium (BCBC) is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Signature Project Program. The ARRA Signature Project Program provides research support for a limited time (up to 24 months) to enable eligible investigators to develop novel human islet cell replacement therapies for diabetes. While insulin replacement therapy has transformed type 1 diabetes (T1D) from a fatal disease to a chronic one, it is still associated with significant morbidity. Complications of diabetes lead to kidney failure, blindness, amputations, and urologic complications, while diabetes increases the risk of macrovascular disease by 2-4 fold. Intensive therapy is associated with significant adverse events related to hypoglycemia. http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=108 http://www.betacell.org/news/index.php?view=108 Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000 We are pleased to announce several significant enhancements to the BCBC and BCBC Genomics websites as "Version 3.4". GENE NETWORK VISUALIZATION The interactive gene network graph has numerous improvements and new features, such as: Filtering by gene context, relationship types and evidence codes, Save/export graph as an image, Toggle to full screen, Non-overlapping relationships, Extended information in Selection Details panel, Underlying data prioritization scheme to limit the number of nodes (genes) displayed while still providing the most relevant, The quickest way to access it is to go a gene page of interest, such as the mouse Pdx1 gene page, and click on the network graph link shown.  We welcome all feedback on not only the tool but the underlying data. NEW GENOMICS STUDIES Rat pancreatic gene expression after culture in increasing glucose levels (Bensellam et al., Diabetologia, 2009). This study is aimed at identifying genes and pathways in rat pancreatic islets affected by prolonged exposure to high and low levels of glucose. Details and data downloads are available. Cell surface markers that distinguish human beta cells and alpha cells (Grompe lab). Details and data downloads are available.