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.

Deletion of Cdkn1b ameliorates hyperglycemia by maintaining compensatory hyperinsulinemia in diabetic mice.

Uchida T, Nakamura T, Hashimoto N, Matsuda T, Kotani K, Sakaue H, Kido Y, Hayashi Y, Nakayama KI, White MF, Kasuga M

Division of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Department of Clinical Molecular Medicine, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, 7-5-1 Kusunoki-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe 650-0017, Japan.

The protein p27(Kip1) regulates cell cycle progression in mammals by inhibiting the activity of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs). Here we show that p27(Kip1) progressively accumulates in the nucleus of pancreatic beta cells in mice that lack either insulin receptor substrate 2 (Irs2(-/-)) or the long form of the leptin receptor (Lepr(-/-) or db/db). Deletion of the gene encoding p27(Kip1) (Cdkn1b) ameliorated hyperglycemia in these animal models of type 2 diabetes mellitus by increasing islet mass and maintaining compensatory hyperinsulinemia, effects that were attributable predominantly to stimulation of pancreatic beta-cell proliferation. Thus, p27(Kip1) contributes to beta-cell failure during the development of type 2 diabetes in Irs2(-/-) and Lepr(-/-) mice and represents a potential new target for the treatment of this condition.

Published 4 February 2005 in Nat Med, 11(2): 175-82.
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