Samantha Mar

Oct 7, 2024 | nature.com | Ben Vanderkruk |Samantha Mar |Shugo Sasaki |Thilo Speckmann |Stefan Taubert |Bradford G. Hoffman

AbstractMediator, a co-regulator complex required for RNA Polymerase II activity, interacts with tissue-specific transcription factors to regulate development and maintain homeostasis. We observe reduced Mediator subunit MED15 expression in endocrine hormone-producing pancreatic islets isolated from people living with type 2 diabetes and sought to understand how MED15 and Mediator control gene expression programs important for the function of insulin-producing β-cells.

Apr 20, 2023 | biorxiv.org | Cuilan Nian |Shugo Sasaki |Samantha Mar |Ekaterina Filatov

AbstractHuman embryonic stem cell (hESC)-derived pancreatic alpha and beta cells can be used to develop cell replacement therapies to treat diabetes. However, recent published differentiation protocols yield varying amounts of alpha and beta cells amidst heterogeneous cell populations. To visualize and isolate hESC-derived alpha and beta cells, we generated a GLUCAGON-2A-mScarlet and INSULIN-2A-EGFP dual fluorescent reporter (INSEGFPGCGmScarlet) hESC line using CRISPR/Cas9.