New findings on blood sugar regulation
Today's New York Times has posted a long article In Diabetes, A Complex of Causes that describes interesting new research into how the body regulates blood sugar.We already know that the pancreas and liver regulate blood sugar levels. This article also describes how a skeletal hormone, osteocalcin, can signal fat cells and the pancrease. Experiments show that it may be possible to boost ostecalcin and affect blood sugar levels, though this will only benefit those with Type 2 diabetes.
The latter part of the article also describes how the brain may actually work to affect blood glucose levels. They've been able to knock out certain receptors in the brain and cause diabetes in mice. And research seems to point to the hypothalamus.
The brain, therefore, appears to be listening to and weighing and making sense of a chorus of signals from insulin, leptin, free fatty acids and glucose itself. In response, it appears to send signals to liver and muscle cells by way of several nerves, though additional mechanisms are probably involved. The gut also seems to chime in, said Dr. Rizza, adding that for him, this aspect of sugar regulation came as the biggest gee whiz of all.This article is a very interesting read into new diabetes research. The New York Times has been doing some great reporting on diabetes treatment and research this year. I'm impressed by the amount of attention they're giving to diabetes.
Labels: diabetes, hypothalamus, NYT, osteocalcin, research
posted by Bernard @ 5:55 AM
8 Comments:
The most impressive thing to me about this latest article is that for the first time in living memory, the author did not write that Type 2 diabetes is caused by obesity, in that tone that assumes that this is something everyone knows.
For the past year I've been peppering the NYTimes with letters that include citations of research showing a strong genetic basis for Type 2 and evidence that blood sugar abnormalities PRECEDE the development of obesity in Type 2.
They've never printed any of them, but Gina Kolata cited one of the studies I'd flagged and this article did not include the "diabetes is a disease of obesity" claim.
So perhaps some kind of realization is starting to dawn. About time!
yeah, I saw this first on Chrissie in Belgium's blog.
VERY interesting, and glad the NYT is publishing such articles!
BTW, I'm enjoying your photos very much thus far, too!
It's not surprising that the NYTimes has been covering Diabetes recently due to the fact that Diabetes is really becoming an epidemic. Thanks for posting the article. I would have been many that missed it.
I saw this on Chrissie's blog this morning, too. At first, I didn't give it much thought, as I thought to myself "big deal, another development in type 2". But as you note, research seems to point to the hypothalamus, which as you are probably aware, is also seen as being at fault in type 1 diabetes for its failure to signal "self" vs. "non-self".
JDRF has made some note of the fact that the etiologies of type 1 and type 2 are no longer as distinct and clear as we once thought, which went over like a lead balloon among type 1 fundraisers. But perhaps research into the hypothalamus' function may shed light on resolving issues for both type 1 and type 2? Stranger things have happened, but the key is not to rely on the pharmaceutical industry for research and development here, and thats an area the ADA has big problems with.
As Mark A. Atkinson noted in an American Diabetes Association Outstanding Scientific Achievement Lecture 2004 entitled "30 Years of Investigating The Autoimmune Basis for Type 1 Diabetes: Why Can't We Prevent or Reverse This Disease?" (http://diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/cgi/content/full/54/5/1253), the biggest reason is that the medical profession continues to underestimate their opponent - diabetes, and that applies to both type 1 AND type 2.
Yeah this article was great - I made it the main theme of my last blog entry. It is so important that scientist are opening their eyes to other causes, other factors that are messing with our bg values. I think the HUGE problem of diabetes in NY and the subsequent obligatory reporting of HbA1c levels has been a major factor in the increased news coverage. And Scott, the more factors get discovered about diabetes, whether it is type 1 or type 2, will help us ALL diabetics! The two types are inter-related. We have to encourage all new thinking surrounding diabetes. That is what new discoveries is all about - looking at an old problem from a new angle.
Bernard, you sent me afterwards an additional related article. Did you get my rely comment to that? i don't think so b/c I got an error message back. i don't really know what it is referring to b/c I am so bad with complicated so computer stuff!
Great article thanks.
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