Pancreatic islet α cells regulate microtubule stability in neighboring β cells to tune insulin secretion and induce functional heterogeneity in individual mouse and human islets.

Unlabelled: We have reported that the microtubule (MT) network in β cells attenuates this function by withdrawing insulin secretory granules (ISGs) away from the plasma membrane. Thus, high glucose-induced MT remodeling is required for robust glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS). We now show that α-cell secreted hormones, Gcg and/or Glp1, regulate the MT stability in β cells.