BetaCell.org researches pancreatic islet development and function
Title
Beta Cell Biology Consortium
Description
The mission of the Beta Cell Biology Consortium (BCBC) is to facilitate interdisciplinary approaches that will advance our understanding of pancreatic islet development and function with the long-term goal of developing a cell-based therapy for insulin delivery.
The scientific goals for the BCBC are to (1) understand the developmental pathways required to produce a fully functioning pancreatic islet (Beta Cell Development), (2) to understand the mechanisms of beta cell regeneration in adult animation and human islets (Beta Cell Regeneration), and (3) to understand the nature of stem/progenitor cells during normal pancreatic development and in adult pancreatic islets (Stem Cell Biology).
The Beta Cell Biology Consortium (BCBC) is a team science initiative that was established by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) in 2001 (RFA DK-01-014), and competitively continued in 2005 (RFA’s DK-01-17, DK-01-18). Currently, the BCBC consists of 29 scientists, the majority of whom participate as either Principal or Co-Principal Investigators on eight U-01 and two U-19 projects. In addition, scientists from two intramural NIDDK laboratories are involved.
