The Expression Of WFS1 During Rat Pancreatic β-cells Development

We expected to use high-density microarray (Affymetrix) to analyze the expression profiles of pancreas development. We generated transcriptional profiles of pancreatic tissue isolated from five biologically significant stages of development: embryonic day (E) 12.5, E15.5, E18.5, newborn and adult pancreas. These analyses implicated that many genes related with pancreatic function were enriched in the later gestation when islet architecture and function are gradually forming. The differential expression of WFS1 mRNA was verified by RT-PCR. Moreover, the differential expression of WFS1 protein was identified by western blotting, with almost same expression profile against mRNA. WFS1 localized both in islets and mesenchymal, which was detected by immunohistochemistry. Our present preliminary evidence suggested that WFS1 might play roles in maintaining islet structure and function, especially in islet remodeling after birth.