Lost in Translation: ER Stress and the Decline of β-cell Health in Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Emerging data illustrate a pivotal role for activation of β-cell endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress pathways in diabetes pathophysiology. The purpose of this review is to appraise the evidence for β-cell ER stress in human type 1 and 2 diabetes, review the molecular signalling pathways involved in the unfolded protein response and ER stress signalling, and to provide data from polyribosome profiling to illustrate the impact of ER stress on the mRNA translation response. Finally, we will discuss existing and novel therapeutic strategies that target β-cell ER stress and discuss their use in rodent and human type 1 and 2 diabetes.