Diabetes Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Diabetes, including details on insulin, type i, type ii, diet, treatment, prevention.

Adipocyte dysfunctions linking obesity to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

Guilherme A, Virbasius JV, Puri V, Czech MP

Program in Molecular Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts 01605, USA.

Acquired resistance to the action of insulin to stimulate glucose transport in skeletal muscle is associated with obesity and promotes the development of type 2 diabetes. In skeletal muscle, insulin resistance can result from high levels of circulating fatty acids that disrupt insulin signalling pathways. However, the severity of insulin resistance varies greatly among obese people. Here we postulate that this variability might reflect differences in levels of lipid-droplet proteins that promote the sequestration of fatty acids within adipocytes in the form of triglycerides, thereby lowering exposure of skeletal muscle to the inhibitory effects of fatty acids.

Published 23 April 2008 in Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol, 9(5): 367-77.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

Articles on Diabetes published 22 April 2008:

Lack of association of genetic variation in chromosome region 15q14-22.1 with type 2 diabetes in a Japanese population.   BMC Med Genet, 9: 22.

BACKGROUND: Chromosome 15q14-22.1 has been linked to type 2 diabetes (T2D) and its related traits in Japanese and other populations. The presence of T2D disease susceptibility variant(s) was assessed in the 21.8 Mb region between D15S118 and D15S117 in a Japanese population using a region-wide case-control association test. METHODS: A two-stage association test was performed using Japanese subjects: The discovery panel (Stage 1) used 372 cases and 360 controls, while an independent replication ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Diabetes published 16 April 2008:

Securing recruitment and obtaining informed consent in minority ethnic groups in the UK.   BMC Health Serv Res, 8: 68.

BACKGROUND: Previous health research has often explicitly excluded individuals from minority ethnic backgrounds due to perceived cultural and communication difficulties, including studies where there might be language/literacy problems in obtaining informed consent. This study addressed these difficulties by developing audio-recorded methods of obtaining informed consent and recording data. This report outlines 1) our experiences with securing recruitment to a qualitative study investigating ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Comprehensive evaluation of the estrogen receptor alpha gene reveals further evidence for association with type 2 diabetes enriched for nephropathy in an African American population.   Hum Genet, 123(4): 333-41.

We previously investigated the estrogen receptor alpha gene (ESR1) as a positional candidate for type 2 diabetes (T2DM), and found evidence for association between the intron 1-intron 2 region of this gene and T2DM and/or nephropathy in an African American (AA) population. Our objective was to comprehensively evaluate variants across the entire ESR1 gene for association in AA with T2DM and end stage renal disease (T2DM-ESRD). One hundred fifty SNPs in ESR1, spanning 476 kb, were genotyped in ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Diabetes published 11 April 2008:

Telmisartan, ramipril, or both in patients at high risk for vascular events.   N Engl J Med, 358(15): 1547-59.

BACKGROUND: In patients who have vascular disease or high-risk diabetes without heart failure, angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitors reduce mortality and morbidity from cardiovascular causes, but the role of angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) in such patients is unknown. We compared the ACE inhibitor ramipril, the ARB telmisartan, and the combination of the two drugs in patients with vascular disease or high-risk diabetes. METHODS: After a 3-week, single-blind run-in period, patients ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Diabetes published 9 April 2008:

Effect of lower targets for blood pressure and LDL cholesterol on atherosclerosis in diabetes: the SANDS randomized trial.   JAMA, 299(14): 1678-89.

CONTEXT: Individuals with diabetes are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD), but more aggressive targets for risk factor control have not been tested. OBJECTIVE: To compare progression of subclinical atherosclerosis in adults with type 2 diabetes treated to reach aggressive targets of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) of 70 mg/dL or lower and systolic blood pressure (SBP) of 115 mm Hg or lower vs standard targets of LDL-C of 100 mg/dL or lower and SBP of 130 mm Hg or ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Diabetes published 8 April 2008:

Prevalence and clinical profile of pancreatic cancer-associated diabetes mellitus.   Gastroenterology, 134(4): 981-7.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Information on the clinical profile of pancreatic cancer (PaC) associated diabetes (DM) is limited. We compared the prevalence and clinical characteristics of DM in subjects with and without PaC. METHODS: We prospectively recruited 512 newly diagnosed PaC cases and 933 controls of similar age, who completed demographic and clinical questionnaires and had fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels measured at recruitment and after pancreaticoduodenectomy (n = 105). Subjects with a ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Impaired hyperaemic and rhythmic vasomotor response in type 1 diabetes mellitus patients: a predictor of early peripheral vascular disease.   Eur J Vasc Endovasc Surg, 35(5): 603-6.

OBJECTIVES: The smooth muscle of distal vascular networks exhibits periodical contraction and relaxation known as rhythmical vasomotion. The nature of microvascular vasomotion has been shown to correlate with severity of peripheral vascular disease. We present basal and post-ischaemic hyperaemic laser doppler flowmetry vasomotion in control and type 1 adult diabetic patients. DESIGN: Prospective case control study. METHODS: Laser Doppler flowmetry was used to measure vasomotion and hyperaemic ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Diabetes published 4 April 2008:

Comparison of pioglitazone vs glimepiride on progression of coronary atherosclerosis in patients with type 2 diabetes: the PERISCOPE randomized controlled trial.   JAMA, 299(13): 1561-73.

CONTEXT: No antidiabetic regimen has demonstrated the ability to reduce progression of coronary atherosclerosis. Commonly used oral glucose-lowering agents include sulfonylureas, which are insulin secretagogues, and thiazolidinediones, which are insulin sensitizers. OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of an insulin sensitizer, pioglitazone, with an insulin secretagogue, glimepiride, on the progression of coronary atherosclerosis in patients with type 2 diabetes. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

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