BiotechMashup

by Adi Mor, Elizabeta Aizman, Jacob George, Yoel Kloog
Background Reduced glucose uptake due to insulin resistance is a pivotal mechanism in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. It is also associated with increased inflammation. Ras inhibition downregulates inflammation in various experimental models. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of Ras inhibition on insulin sensitivity and glucose uptake, as well as its influence on type 2 diabetes development.

Scientists have found 13 new genetic variants that influence blood glucose regulation, insulin resistance, and the function of insulin-secreting beta cells in populations of European descent. Five of the newly discovered variants increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, the most common form of diabetes.

(NIH/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) An international research consortium has found 13 new genetic variants that influence blood glucose regulation, insulin resistance, and the function of insulin-secreting beta cells in populations of European descent. Five of the newly discovered variants increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, the most common form of diabetes.

Fat tissue in women with polycystic ovary syndrome produces an inadequate amount of the hormone that regulates how fats and glucose are processed, promoting increased insulin resistance and inflammation, glucose intolerance and greater risk of diabetes and heart disease, according to a study.

Fructose, a sugar widely used in soft drinks and processed foods, often gets some of the blame for the widespread rise in obesity. Now a laboratory study has found that when fructose is present as children's fat cells mature, it makes more of these cells mature into fat cells in belly fat and less able to respond to insulin in both belly fat and fat located below the skin.

Researchers recently offered the sharpest-yet picture of how core biochemical pathways in skeletal muscle cells and fat cells are altered in people who suffer from insulin resistance -- a primary defect in type 2 diabetes and obesity. Taking a systems biology approach, the bioengineers and medical researchers also determined how a common class of drugs for treating insulin resistance -- TZDs -- alter these same core pathways.

New research finds evidence supporting relationships seen in adolescents between insulin sensitivity and fatty liver, belly fat, and total body fat and identifies additional potential early markers of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome in healthy 7-9 year-olds, including fat in muscle cells, blood pressure, physical activity, and birth weight.

(University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences) A high-fat diet during pregnancy may program a woman's baby for future diabetes, even if she herself is not obese or diabetic, says a new University of Illinois study."We found that exposure to a high-fat diet before birth modifies gene expression in the livers of offspring so they are more likely to overproduce glucose, which can cause early insulin resistance and diabetes," said Yuan-Xiang Pan, a U of I professor of nutrition.

Emodin, a natural product that can be extracted from various Chinese herbs including Rheum palmatum and Polygonum cuspidatum, shows promise as an agent that could reduce the impact of type 2 diabetes. New findings show that giving emodin to mice with diet-induced obesity lowered blood glucose and serum insulin, improved insulin resistance and lead to more healthy levels of lipid in the blood. It also decreased body weight and reduced central fat mass.