Presenter(s): Robin Black—Biology
Co-Presenter(s):Ian Torrence, Emily Niebergall, Dan Tudorica
Faculty Mentor(s): Karen Guillemin, Michelle Massaquoi
Session 4: Earning your Stripes
All organisms co-exist with a plethora of bacteria, fungi, and viruses living on and within them, collectively known as a microbiota . Previous work has shown that in the absence of the microbiota (after a germ-free derivation), the beta-cells within larval zebrafish fail to develop (Hill et al ., 2016) . Beta-cells are insulin-producing cells found in the pancreas and are vital for glucose uptake in the body . This experiment has practical applications, as Type I diabetes in humans is an autoimmune disease where the body attacks its own beta-cells . Recently, the Guillemin lab has discovered a novel bacterial-secreted protein, Beta-Cell Expansion Factor A (BefA), that is sufficient to rescue beta-cell proliferation within germ-free zebrafish . Although the study found that BefA is critical for beta cell development, its potential role in beta-cell regeneration is unknown . The goal of this study is to test the role of BefA in pancreatic beta-cell regeneration after induced beta-cell death . Using a transgenic line of zebrafish, we validated that we can significantly and specifically ablate beta cells in larval zebrafish . We next plan to ablate beta-cells of conventionally reared (with microbiota) and germ-free zebrafish treated with and without BefA and quantify the number of beta-cells regenerated . We predict that upon the addition of BefA, there will be a rescue in the number of beta-cells . From this experiment we will learn about the potential therapeutic uses of BefA to recover beta-cells and broadly the important roles that gut microbiota play in host homeostasis .