Proceedings of the First International Meeting of the Pancreatic Islet Study Group held in the Alicante, Spain, November 25-28 1994

The Islets of Langerhans: Biochemistry, Physiology, and Pathology reviews the state of knowledge in the complex phenomena involved in the functioning of the multiendocrine organ, the islet of Langerhans, and the various influences that can lead to its abnormal functioning. The volume highlights major gaps in knowledge and indicates the directions for research on the major functioning of this organ and the defects leading to its major pathology, diabetes mellitus. The book is organized into three parts. Part I provides the necessary background information on the nature and development of the islet of Langerhans. It includes studies on the evolution of knowledge of the ever-increasing number of cell types found in islet tissue; and fetal development of the functional capacities of the islet cells. Part II is devoted to the synthesis and secretion of islet hormones, beginning with a chapter on the membrane transport systems of islet tissue as a prelude to subsequent examination of their role in the regulation of these processes. Part III examines the effects of deleterious conditions and agents on the morphology and function of islet cells. This book is intended for researchers in endocrinology, particularly those interested in pancreatic hormones, graduate students in endocrinology, and medical endocrinologists interested in diabetes. It will also be useful to physiologists and biochemists studying peptide synthesis and secretion.

When new fellows join my lab, I give them some reading materials so that they can orient themselves in their assignment in a new eld. When fellows leave my lab, some after writing their dissertations, I prefer to give them a book as a symbolic present. I was longing for a book that contained something on more or less eve- thing about the islets. At the same time, I wished it contained information as recent as possible. There are a few such books in the market but they are pretty outdated. I started picking islets myself from October 1990, when I joined the Rolf Luft Center, Karolinska Institutet. Over the years my fascination for islet research remained high. Since last year, I felt a stronger urge to do more for these mysterious and hidden mini-organs that are directly or indirectly involved in the pathogenesis of all forms of diabetes that affects ?250 million people in the world. After I launched the Islet (landesbioscience. com/journals/islets) and founded the Islet Society (isletso- ety. org), there was a momentum that could be utilized to create something equally meaningful i. e. this book. The idea cracked in September 2008. Starting September 19, 2008, I contacted an estimated 90% of the authors who published anything on the islets during 2007–2008 and who could be traced from the internet.

As far as we are aware, this is the first attempt to cover the com parative physiology of the pancreatic islets in a monograph. The topics discussed would probably have sufficed to fill about half a dozen monographs, a matter that becomes obvious from a look at the Contents. Hence, we have tried to present the ma terial more in the form of a digest, to emphasize evolutionary perspectives, to point out critical issues, and to identify challenging topics for future research. This approach required an arbitrary reduction of the num ber of references, and we therefore join the chorus of recent authors who beg their colleagues for understanding if some of their publications do not appear in the bibliography. Keeping up with the current literature was like fighting one of those monsters that grow a couple of new heads for each one that is cut off. Nevertheless, we hope that we have covered most of the key publications up to the autumn of 1986. We gratefully acknowledge the advice of many colleagues, and in particular the invaluable criticisms of Robert L. Hazelwood and Erika Plisetskaya. Special thanks are due to the series editor, Donald S. Farner, for his patience and guidance, both of which were fresh proof of his legendary diplomatic skills. Finally, we wish to thank Dr. D. Czeschlik and his staff at the Springer Verlag for their patience and support. Philadelphia, PA AUGUST EpPLE Greenville, NC JACK E. BRINN September 1987 v Contents Chapter 1. Introduction .......................... .