Supplementary Figure 6

The effect of Tlr2/Tlr4 on islet expansion is islet-intrinsic. a, qPCR analysis showing the expression of Tlr2 and Tlr4 in islets from mice at the indicated ages on LFD. Data are normalized to Hprt (housekeeping gene) and then to that of 2-month (m) timepoint. n = 3, 4, 5, 4 (2, 4, 8 and 12 m). Values represent mean ± SEM. **, p < 0.01; ***, p < 0.001 by one-way ANOVA with Newman-Keuls post test. b-d, Islet transplantation under kidney capsules: (b) Schematic diagram of islet transplantation assay, in which 100 B6 or Tlr2^−/−Tlr4^−/− primary islets were transplanted under the left and right kidney capsules, respectively, of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic recipient, either B6 or Tlr2^−/−Tlr4^−/− mice. The islets from B6 and Tlr2^−/−Tlr4^−/− mice were transplanted into the same recipient to exclude potential effect from the host. c, Representative photos showing islet grafts under the kidney capsules of B6 (left) and Tlr2^−/−Tlr4^−/− (right) recipients. n = 4 mice each. d, Representative confocal images showing CD31⁺ endothelial cells, that is vascularization, in B6 and Tlr2^−/−Tlr4^−/− islet grafts. The dotted line marks the boundary of the islets (note high auto-fluorescent signals of the surrounding kidney tubules); for Tlr2^−/−Tlr4^−/− islets, the whole field is full of β cells. Scale bars, 100 µm. n = 4 mice each.