beta cell
Sign in to saveAlso known as β-cell, β cell, type B pancreatic cell, beta cell of pancreatic islet, pancreatic beta cell
type of cell found in pancreatic islets
Key facts
- Location
- Pancreatic islet
- Function
- Insulin secretion
- Latin
- endocrinocytus B; insulinocytus
- Th
- H3.04.02.0.00026
via Wikipedia infobox
~15 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Human pancreatic islet by immunostaining. Nuclei of cells are shown in blue (DAPI). Beta cells are shown in green (Insulin), Delta cells are shown in white (Somatostatin).
Beta cells (β-cells) are specialized endocrine cells located within the pancreatic islets of Langerhans responsible for the production and release of insulin and amylin. Constituting ~50–70% of cells in human islets, beta cells play a vital role in maintaining blood glucose levels. Problems with beta cells can lead to disorders such as diabetes.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “beta cell” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.