Failure of the functional pancreatic β-cell mass to expand in response to increased
metabolic demand is a hallmark of type 2 diabetes. Lineage tracing studies indicate that
replication of existing β-cells is important for β-cell proliferation in adult animals. In rat
pancreatic β-cell lines (RIN5F), treatment with 100 nm thyroid hormone (triiodothyronine, T
3) enhances cell proliferation. This result suggests that T 3 is required for β-cell proliferation
or replication. To identify the role of thyroid hormone receptor α (TRα) in the processes of β …