All cells in our body have the same DNA. If we were to compare a cell to a computer, this DNA would be the "hardware". In fact, all cells also have the same genes. However, the genes are not expressed in the same way in all cells. This is what determines the identity of a cell and, consequently, what characterizes the organs between them. This character of a cell is determined by its genetics and by its epigenetics. Epigenetics refers to the hundreds or even thousands of biochemical modifications that a cell's DNA and the proteins that surround it undergo in response to its environment. In fact, these epigenetic modifications constitute a kind of software that programs and above all adapts the functioning of a cell to its environment. Cells specialize in their environment thanks to epigenetics.

Beta cells have the exclusive right to produce insulin, the only hormone that reduces blood sugar in the body. They secrete a significant amount of this hormone into the bloodstream when blood sugar levels rise. Architecturally, beta cells are also very plastic. They are able to increase in volume and number when body mass increases and when overeating rich in fats and carbohydrates is chronic. This plasticity and the ability of cells to secrete insulin in response to glucose are established by a software set up between the period of exclusive breastfeeding of the newborn and the period of weaning, characterized by the appearance of a diet rich in sugar. Once the diet is acquired, this software becomes silent in adulthood. However, a body of evidence supports the hypothesis that this software becomes active again in adult beta cells, when we are confronted with weight gain, pregnancy or excessive feeding, in order to increase cell mass and insulin production...