REGGAE ARTISTE Isha Blender is still coming to terms with the loss of her son, Josiah, on January 5, a mere two days after she celebrated her birthday. The daughter of legendary crooner Everton Blender said the death of a child can be one of the...

IT IS said that every cloud has a silver lining, and that could still hold true, even in the midst of a terrifying global pandemic. Despite COVID-19, the cycle of life continues, and out of it has sprung forth an inspiring poetry competition,...

By the month of May in any given year, the many and varied events and competitions staged by the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) islandwide would have been in high gear. Each year the JCDC rolls out its much-anticipated menu board...

There has been an outpouring of grief following the death of legendary Jamaican singer Millicent Dolly May Small, popularly known as Millie Small. She died in the United Kingdom today at the age of 73 after suffering a stroke. The voice...

BEFORE MILLIE Small became the ‘lollipop girl’, she was a ‘sugar plum’. Not only is it a term of endearment, it is also the title of her first song – a duet as it was called back in 1960 – with singer Owen Gray. This collab was born out of the time...

LOS ANGELES (AP) — It’s been over a decade since reggae king Buju Banton and R&B star John Legend collaborated on a song, and the Grammy winners have reunited for a new track. Banton and Legend released the easygoing love song...

Despite its best efforts, COVID-19 will not be allowed to steal the joy of Mother’s Day this year. An array of the island’s top singers and musicians have pledged to infuse the accustomed specialness into the day dedicated to mothers with a concert...

The face of entertainment is changing, and the creative industry is finding new and innovative ways to reach audiences and showcase their talent, and Sunday Live is one such innovation that is creating waves online. The brainchild of entrepreneur...

Since this week would have been carnival week in Jamaica, we are taking you back to the mecca, Trinidad and Tobago, where just a few months ago, before the pandemic, the region’s local designers, musicians and the revellers were on show. The...

In a time like this, families are being offered time to bond. We eat, laugh, cry and even share a frame together to be added to our reservoir of memories. Here’s a family of familiar faces who did a photo shoot in true Easter-loving style.

While many in the heat of this COVID-19 pandemic are staying inside, Jodian Duhaney, her fiancé and a team of friends are out in the communities of St James giving care packages to those in need. For Flashback Friday, Something Extra brings you...

As the Jamaica and the rest of the world continue to feel the impact of COVID-19, corporate companies are stepping up in a big way, providing support and assistance to communities, individuals and other organisations that are directly or indirectly...

The fourth in the series of the musical showcase Sunday Live, powered by Sagicor, was held on Sunday, April 19 at Pier One on the Waterfront and featured some of Jamaica’s top up-and-coming talents. The series, which is the brainchild of...

It’s #ThrowBackThursday, and we are looking back to the days when dressing up meant more than just going from room to room. Extra went down memory lane with these hotties who are just counting down the days to go back out and slay.

Jamaican cultural ambassador Latonya Style is known for taking her passion and promoting dancehall across the world. Something Extra celebrates Flashback Friday by bringing you behind the scenes of this globetrotter’s dance workshop and tour in...

Dominique Roache, a Jamaican medical student living and studying in Belize, has found a new hobby since San Pedro went under complete lockdown – self-portraits. “I’ve been inside for so long, I decided to start taking pictures of myself, using...

Sunday Live continues to showcase the musical prowess of some of Jamaica’s finest talent, and this past Sunday, April 26, the event featured songstress Shuga and reggae bands Earth Kry and TennShann Invasion. Now, with five episodes under its belt...

Facebook, Instagram and Twitter were virtually set ablaze last Sunday when Koffee, Wayne Marshall, and Naomi Cowan took to the stage for the final instalment of Jamaica’s most viewed online entertainment event — the D’Music-powered ‘Digicel...

On Wednesday, the world celebrated International Dance Day. So let’s join in the festivities, bringing to the stage highlights of PAH Deaf Dance Company performance showcase during Kingston Creative’s Art Walk, held earlier this year at Water Lane...

Before COVID-19, media personality Sapphire was bringing the heat with her birthday celebration ‘Fuego’. It’s throwback Tuesday, so let’s rewind with a ‘fêting’ dose of Something Extra.

The Sunday Live stage continues to showcase some of Jamaica’s talented musicians, and on Sunday, May 3, up-and-coming singer Yeza; and singer, drummer and percussionist Roots Percussionist took centre stage and delivered powerful performances to...

Our favourite Instagram feed this week is by Antiguan native Jaycie Lewis. From head to toe, @aurajae_ has been serving us looks, melanin and style all in one go, and we are 100 per cent loving it. “To be honest, I haven’t been ‘doing looks’. I’ve...

Rate those who rate you. Yung Rolaz had this mantra in the streets, providing patrons with the ultimate party experience. Since outside is no longer a festive option, let’s celebrate flashback Friday with hot highlights from the local and...

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The global pandemic is real, with almost 8,000 deaths worldwide and nearly 200,000 persons having contracted the virus in 155 affected countries. What is particularly comforting for this country, amid pain and the not knowing, is the bedside and...

When I tell people that I do not remember learning how to read, they laugh. But I really do not recall learning to read. Reading was an activity that excited my family, and so it was no surprise that I would love reading. The love of books and...

Between December 2019 and February 2020, The Gleaner published a series of articles on my behalf, exploring the issue of food security in Jamaica based on an analysis of the country’s food-import bill for 2018. The current COVID-19 pandemic, which...

Chupski dons her mask once she ventures out in public. To the bank, the supermarket, the ­pharmacy, the ATM. So far I have never even tried on the one I have. Maybe I should have worn it last Thursday mid-­morning as I stood at the entrance to the...

A few days ago as the lady and I drove out, headed to the hardware store to purchase one piece of lumber, she was wearing a face mask, and I had mine on the seat behind me. “So, what’s the point of you wearing the mask in the car and me without...

Public reaction to the initial threat of the coronavirus (COVID-19) was predictably mixed. While international news of the contagion across continents helped people to appreciate that this was not restricted to a particular region, not many people...

On Tuesday, April 14, the International Monetary Fund downgraded Jamaica’s growth prospects to -5.6 per cent. This is a severe contraction warranting substantial Government intervention. However, at times, the Government waits too late to respond...

The global COVID-19 spread has gone from bad to worse, with over 3.2 million confirmed cases and close to 250,000 deaths, not only has this pandemic claimed innumerable lives, it has also destabilised economies by freezing trade and other economic...

The national priority at this time must be the protection of the Jamaican people against the onset of COVID-19. This has to be done by striking the balance between implementing protective public-health measures and providing a supporting economic...

Michelle Thomas has joined the ranks of society’s young movers and shakers in her capacity as a lawyer. The work truly began after she was crowned Miss Kingston and St Andrew Festival Queen in 2015. Since then, she has been pushing for more female...

From formalising her father’s business and taking it to higher and more profitable heights to sitting on the board of EXIM Bank and lecturing in the field of business development, Lacey-Ann Bartley has earned her stripes as the Distinguished Woman...

Monique Lynch is a 29-year-old who believes her purpose is to improve the lives of those around her, especially the downtrodden and persons living with mental health issues. This angel-on-earth in the eyes of many is a Jill of several trades as...

Novelist, writer and designer Edith Wharton once said, “There are two ways of spreading light – to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it”. Shining a light of faith and hope for girls through the provision of an open and safe place is Britney...

Let’s face it, ladies: boosting your health is not always your primary priority, but it needs to be. It doesn’t require a long, overbearing and spine-chilling regime. Simple lifestyle changes can get the job done! In the end you’ll be left with a...

“Don’t use social media to impress people, use it to impact people.” – Dave Willis This is the strategy used by The Distinguished’s 2020 Social Media Personality of the Year, Dr Terri-Karelle Reid, who has, in some aspect, impacted the...

Famous American poet and singer Maya Angelou shared this about matters pertaining to the heart: “Love recognises no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.” What started out as an...

It is definitely a make-or-break season for those trying to balance career and COVID-19 at home. For some, it is the ideal time to reconnect with themselves, family members and get creative with work. While with others, the cookie crumbles and they...

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A sufficient β-cell mass is crucial for preventing diabetes, and perinatal β-cell proliferation is important in determining the adult β-cell mass. However, it is not yet known how perinatal β-cell proliferation is regulated. Here, we report that serotonin regulates β-cell proliferation through serotonin receptor 2B (HTR2B) in an autocrine/paracrine manner during the perinatal period. In β-cell–specific Tph1 knockout (Tph1 βKO) mice, perinatal β-cell proliferation was reduced along with the loss of serotonin production in β-cells. Adult Tph1 βKO mice exhibited glucose intolerance with decreased β-cell mass. Disruption of Htr2b in β-cells also resulted in decreased perinatal β-cell proliferation and glucose intolerance in adulthood. Growth hormone (GH) was found to induce serotonin production in β-cells through activation of STAT5 during the perinatal period. Thus, our results indicate that GH-GH receptor-STAT5-serotonin-HTR2B signaling plays a critical role in determining the β-cell mass by regulating perinatal β-cell proliferation, and defects in this pathway affect metabolic phenotypes in adults.

Active maintenance of β-cell identity through fine-tuned regulation of key transcription factors ensures β-cell function. Tacrolimus, a widely used immunosuppressant, accelerates onset of diabetes after organ transplantation, but underlying molecular mechanisms are unclear. Here we show that tacrolimus induces loss of human β-cell maturity and β-cell failure through activation of the BMP/SMAD signaling pathway when administered under mild metabolic stress conditions. Tacrolimus-induced phosphorylated SMAD1/5 acts in synergy with metabolic stress–activated FOXO1 through formation of a complex. This interaction is associated with reduced expression of the key β-cell transcription factor MAFA and abolished insulin secretion, both in vitro in primary human islets and in vivo in human islets transplanted into high-fat diet–fed mice. Pharmacological inhibition of BMP signaling protects human β-cells from tacrolimus-induced β-cell dysfunction in vitro. Furthermore, we confirm that BMP/SMAD signaling is activated in protocol pancreas allograft biopsies from recipients on tacrolimus. To conclude, we propose a novel mechanism underlying the diabetogenicity of tacrolimus in primary human β-cells. This insight could lead to new treatment strategies for new-onset diabetes and may have implications for other forms of diabetes.

The molecular mechanisms of β-cell compensation to metabolic stress are poorly understood. We previously observed that nutrient-induced β-cell proliferation in rats is dependent on epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling. The aim of this study was to determine the role of the EGFR ligand heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor (HB-EGF) in the β-cell proliferative response to glucose, a β-cell mitogen and key regulator of β-cell mass in response to increased insulin demand. We show that exposure of isolated rat and human islets to HB-EGF stimulates β-cell proliferation. In rat islets, inhibition of EGFR or HB-EGF blocks the proliferative response not only to HB-EGF but also to glucose. Furthermore, knockdown of HB-EGF in rat islets blocks β-cell proliferation in response to glucose ex vivo and in vivo in transplanted glucose-infused rats. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that HB-EGF mRNA levels are increased in β-cells in response to glucose in a carbohydrate-response element–binding protein (ChREBP)–dependent manner. In addition, chromatin immunoprecipitation studies identified ChREBP binding sites in proximity to the HB-EGF gene. Finally, inhibition of Src family kinases, known to be involved in HB-EGF processing, abrogated glucose-induced β-cell proliferation. Our findings identify a novel glucose/HB-EGF/EGFR axis implicated in β-cell compensation to increased metabolic demand.

Aging-dependent changes in tissue function are associated with the development of metabolic diseases. However, the molecular connections linking aging, obesity, and diabetes remain unclear. Lamin A, lamin C, and progerin, products of the Lmna gene, have antagonistic functions on energy metabolism and life span. Lamin C, albeit promoting obesity, increases life span, suggesting that this isoform is crucial for maintaining healthy conditions under metabolic stresses. Because β-cell loss during obesity or aging leads to diabetes, we investigated the contribution of lamin C to β-cell function in physiopathological conditions. We demonstrate that aged lamin C only–expressing mice (Lmna^LCS/LCS) become obese but remain glucose tolerant due to adaptive mechanisms including increased β-cell mass and insulin secretion. Triggering diabetes in young mice revealed that Lmna^LCS/LCS animals normalize their fasting glycemia by both increasing insulin secretion and regenerating β-cells. Genome-wide analyses combined to functional analyses revealed an increase of mitochondrial biogenesis and global translational rate in Lmna^LCS/LCS islets, two major processes involved in insulin secretion. Altogether, our results demonstrate for the first time that the sole expression of lamin C protects from glucose intolerance through a β-cell–adaptive transcriptional program during metabolic stresses, highlighting Lmna gene processing as a new therapeutic target for diabetes treatment.

The host environment is a crucial factor for considering the transplant of stem cell–derived immature pancreatic cells in patients with type 1 diabetes. Here, we investigated the effect of insulin (INS)-deficient diabetes on the fate of immature pancreatic endocrine cell grafts and the underlying mechanisms. Human induced pluripotent stem cell–derived pancreatic endocrine progenitor cells (EPCs), which contained a high proportion of chromogranin A⁺ NK6 homeobox 1⁺ cells and very few INS⁺ cells, were used. When the EPCs were implanted under the kidney capsule in immunodeficient mice, INS-deficient diabetes accelerated increase in plasma human C-peptide, a marker of graft-derived INS secretion. The acceleration was suppressed by INS infusion but not affected by partial attenuation of hyperglycemia by dapagliflozin, an INS-independent glucose-lowering agent. Immunohistochemical analyses indicated that the grafts from diabetic mice contained more endocrine cells including proliferative INS-producing cells compared with that from nondiabetic mice, despite no difference in whole graft mass between the two groups. These data suggest that INS-deficient diabetes upregulates the INS-secreting capacity of EPC grafts by increasing the number of endocrine cells including INS-producing cells without changing the graft mass. These findings provide useful insights into postoperative diabetic care for cell therapy using stem cell–derived pancreatic cells.

Here are answers to some of the primary questions you may have as the defending National League East champs prepare to begin Spring Training next week.