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Produced by pancreatic beta cells, insulin is a key regulator of glucose homeostasis. Insufficient insulin leads to diabetes mellitus, a metabolic disease that affects over 300 million people worldwide. As beta cell replacement can be an efficient therapy for all types of diabetes, Principal Investigator Xiangwei Xiao, MD, PhD, and his research team are exploring the mechanisms that govern beta cell regeneration at both cellular level and molecular level in search of new therapies to prevent and treat diabetes.
Diabetes includes the two most common kinds, type 1 (T1D) and type 2 (T2D), as well as some uncommon types, including chronic pancreatitis-related diabetes (CPRD) and type 3 diabetes (T3D), which has been linked to losses in cognitive function.
The most prevalent form of diabetes, T2D, is believed to result from the loss of sensitivity of other cells to insulin. It is often associated with insulin resistance, inadequate insulin production and secretion by the pancreatic beta cells, beta cell dysfunction, and eventual beta cell loss. Believed to result from autoimmune destruction of the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas, T1D is usually diagnosed in children and young adults. While it is accompanied by more severe symptoms and complications than T2D, it constitutes only about 5% of all diabetes cases.
The lab team has found that pancreatic macrophages play a pivotal role in the initiation and progression of diabetes, and it is now dissecting the precise molecular interaction between macrophages and beta cells. Xiao Lab researchers are also trying to develop practical treatments of various diabetes through manipulating macrophages in vivo.
Macrophages mediate the response of beta cells to metabolic needs and inflammatory insults.
The ultimate goals of the Xiao Lab are to prevent the occurrence of diabetes and to develop effective treatments for all kinds of diabetes, using state-of-the-art cell biology and molecular biology tools.
Researchers have five primary areas of focus:
Principal Investigator xiangwei.xiao@chp.edu Read More>>
Yinan Jiang, MD, PhD Research Assistant yinan.jiang12@chp.edu
Chaoban Wang, MD Visiting Scholar chaoban.wang11@chp.edu
Jieqi Qian, MD Visiting Scholar skyler_qian@163.com
The Xiao Lab UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh John G. Rangos Sr. Research Center, 6th floor, Bay 9 4401 Penn Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15224 412-692-7519
Yinan Jiang, MD, PhD, gave a platform presentation, entitled “Placental Growth Factor in Mouse Beta Cells Plays an Essential Role in Gestational Beta Cell Growth,” at the Midwest Islet Club Annual Meeting in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Xiangwei Xiao, MD, PhD, was a speaker at the American Diabetes Association Annual Meeting in San Diego.
Xiangwei Xiao, MD, PhD, was an invited symposium speaker at the American Diabetes Association Annual Meeting in New Orleans.
Placental Growth Factor in Beta-cellsplays an Essential Role in Gestational Beta-cell Growth Yang W, Jiang Y, Wang Y, Zhang T, Liu Q, Wang C, Swisher G, Wu N, Chao C, Prasadan K, Gittes GK and Xiao X BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care 2020 Jan
Calpastatin Mediates Development of Alzheimer’s Disease in Diabetes Zhu L, Gong L, Yang T, Xiao X Journal of Alzheimers Disease 2019 Mar 19
Prion Protein is Essential for Diabetic Retinopathy-associated Neovascularization Zhu L, Xu J, Liu Y, Gong T, Liu J, Huang Q, Fischbach S, Zou W, Xiao X Angiogenesis 2018 May 30
Endogenous Reprogramming of Alpha Cells into Beta Cells Induced by Viral Gene Therapy Reverses Autoimmune Diabetes Xiao X, Guo P, Shiota C, Zhang T, Coudriet GM, Fischbach S, Prasadan K, Fusco J, Ramachandran S, Witkowski P, Piganelli JD, Gittes GK Cell Stem Cell 2018 Jan 6
SMAD3/Stat3 Signaling Mediates β-Cell Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition in Chronic Pancreatitis-Related Diabetes Xiao X, Fischbach S, Zhang T, Chen C, Sheng Q, Zimmerman R, Patnaik S, Fusco J, Ming Y, Guo P, Shiota C, Prasadan K, Gangopadhyay N, Husain SZ, Dong H, Gittes GK Diabetes 2017 Oct
Pancreatic Cell Tracing, Lineage-tagging, and Targeted Genetic Manipulations in Multiple Cell Types Using Pancreatic Ductal Infusion of Adeno-associated Viral Vectors and/or Cell-tagging Dyes Xiao X, Guo P, Prasadan K, Shiota C, Peirish L, Fischbach S, Song Z, Gaffar I, Wiersch J, El-Gohary Y, Husain SZ, Gittes GK Nature Protocols 2014 Oct 31
M2 Macrophages Promote Beta-cell Proliferation by Up-regulation of SMAD7 Xiao X, Gaffar I, Guo P, Wiersch J, Fischbach S, Peirish L, Song Z, El-Gohary Y, Prasadan K, Shiota C, Gittes GK Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 2014 Mar 19
Pancreatic Duct Cells as a Source of VEGF in Mice Xiao X, Prasadan K, Guo P, El-Gohary Y, Wiersch J, Gaffar I, Shiota C, Gittes GK Diabetologia 2014 Feb 18
No Evidence for Beta Cell Neogenesis in Murine Adult Pancreas Xiao X, Chen Z, Shiota C, Prasadan K, Guo P, El-Gohary Y, Paredes J, Welsh C, Wiersch J, Gittes GK The Journal of Clinical Investigation 2013 Apr 27
TGFβ Receptor Signaling Is Essential for Inflammation-Induced but Not β-Cell Workload-Induced β-Cell Proliferation Xiao X, Wiersch J, El-Gohary Y, Guo P, Prasadan K, Paredes J, Welsh C, Shiota C, Gittes GK Diabetes 2013 Apr
The Xiao Lab is looking for talented graduate and undergraduate students who are interested in joining the team for part-time research. If you are interested, please contact Dr. Xiangwei Xiao via email.
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