Patent ID: 7381523

Claim:
A method for identifying candidate pancreatic beta cell-sensitizing compounds comprising: (a) providing a pancreatic beta-islet cell population derived from a diabetic subject, wherein the pancreatic beta islet cell population comprises pancreatic beta islet cells expressing somatostatin receptor 5; (b) contacting the pancreatic beta-islet cell population with one or more somatostatin receptor 5-binding test compounds, wherein the contacting is performed at a glucose concentration of between 8 mM and 30 mM; and (c) identifying those somatostatin receptor 5-binding test compounds that promote insulin secretion from the pancreatic beta-islet cell population to a greater degree than from a control pancreatic beta-islet cell population from a normoglycemic subject, wherein such compounds are candidate pancreatic beta cell-sensitizing compounds.