  |
|
|
|
Type II Diabetes: A Look at VaspinA Probable Marker for Insulin Resistance
Many type II diabetics experience insulin resistance, a diminished response to the secretion of insulin by the pancreas. A protein named Vaspin could combat this effect.
Diabetes is the number one cause of heart disease and it is increasingly prevalent in today's population. Obese individuals are at a higher risk to develop type II diabetes and scientists have been searching for a link between increased weight and the onset of the disease. Vaspin is a type of cell signaling protein released from the adipose tissue, or fat cells. Obesity is a known risk factor for type II diabetes and a majority of obese individuals develop insulin resistance- a lack of response to insulin that inhibits their cells' ability to absorb the sugar from their blood. Current research suggests that the increased expression of vaspin from the adipose tissue in overweight individuals may help counteract their growing insulin resistance and offer a measuring-stick for identifying those in danger of becoming type II diabetics. Vaspin and Insulin ResistanceVaspin is present in the blood of healthy individuals in sex-dependent concentrations, with females producing approximately 2.5 times as much of the protein as males. However, in individuals with type II diabetes, the levels detected were the same for males and females. This implies that vaspin concentrations could be influenced by the sugar metabolism. In non-diabetics, levels of vaspin appear to increase in conjunction with the body mass index, meaning that vaspin concentrations are markedly higher in obese subjects. Also, the level of vaspin is inversely proportional to insulin sensitivity, so more vaspin is produced in individuals displaying higher insulin resistance. This is exciting because it shows the body may be trying to naturally combat the insulin resistance caused by weight gain. In type II diabetics, vaspin concentrations were unrelated to body mass index which again implies that the disease causes errors in vaspin secretion. However, it is possible that the medications used to treat diabetics somehow interfere in vaspin regulation, and further studies will need to be performed to determine the effects that they have. Researchers put their subjects through a 4 week physical training program and found that it caused a significant increase in insulin sensitivity and vaspin expression for both healthy subjects and type II diabetics. This was in contrast to trained athletes undergoing the same regimen, whose bodies were used to the strain and saw little change in either. The level of vaspin in the subjects' blood directly related to the drop in insulin resistance, and this agreed with earlier experiments in diabetic rats where injections of vaspin improved their insulin sensitivity. Vaspin offers a promising marker for identifying those obese individuals whose insulin resistance is increasing and putting them at risk for type II diabetes. The protein could also be considered a candidate for research as a anti-insulin resistance treatment. References: 1. Youn BS, Klöting N, Kratzsch J, Lee N, Park JW, Song ES, Ruschke K, Oberbach A, Fasshauer M, Stumvoll M, Blüher M: Serum vaspin concentrations in human obesity and type 2 diabetes. Diabetes. 2008 Feb;57(2):372-7. Epub 2007 Nov 8.
The copyright of the article Type II Diabetes: A Look at Vaspin in Diabetes Diagnosis is owned by Daniel Devine. Permission to republish Type II Diabetes: A Look at Vaspin in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
|
|
|
|
