| First Author | Kawana Y | Year | 2024 |
| Journal | Nat Biomed Eng | Volume | 8 |
| Issue | 7 | Pages | 808-822 |
| PubMed ID | 37945752 | Mgi Jnum | J:392972 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:8272342 | Doi | 10.1038/s41551-023-01113-2 |
| Citation | Kawana Y, et al. (2024) Optogenetic stimulation of vagal nerves for enhanced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and beta cell proliferation. Nat Biomed Eng 8(7):808-822 |
| abstractText | The enhancement of insulin secretion and of the proliferation of pancreatic beta cells are promising therapeutic options for diabetes. Signals from the vagal nerve regulate both processes, yet the effectiveness of stimulating the nerve is unclear, owing to a lack of techniques for doing it so selectively and prolongedly. Here we report two optogenetic methods for vagal-nerve stimulation that led to enhanced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and to beta cell proliferation in mice expressing choline acetyltransferase-channelrhodopsin 2. One method involves subdiaphragmatic implantation of an optical fibre for the photostimulation of cholinergic neurons expressing a blue-light-sensitive opsin. The other method, which suppressed streptozotocin-induced hyperglycaemia in the mice, involves the selective activation of vagal fibres by placing blue-light-emitting lanthanide microparticles in the pancreatic ducts of opsin-expressing mice, followed by near-infrared illumination. The two methods show that signals from the vagal nerve, especially from nerve fibres innervating the pancreas, are sufficient to regulate insulin secretion and beta cell proliferation. |
