Figure 1. Pro-tumorigenic role of REG3β in pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Regenerating islet-derived 3β (REG3β) secreted by the acinar cells that surround pancreatic tumors acts in a paracrine manner on peri-tumoral macrophages, hence skewing them toward the M2 phenotype. REG3β operates by activating signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), a transcription factor that is required for the development and progression of pancreatic cancer.