Insulin News and Research

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Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert glucose, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. Insulin allows cells to use glucose for fuel and is secreted by beta cells in the islets of Langerhans. The release of insulin from the pancreas is stimulated by increased blood glucose, vagal nerve stimulation, and other factors. Insulin is obtained from various animals and available in a variety of preparations. Commercial insulin preparations differ in a number of ways, including differences in the animal species from which they are obtained; their purity, concentration, and solubility; and the time of onset and duration of their biologic action. An oral hypoglycemic agent is not a form of insulin therapy.

Blackcurrants have beneficial effect on post-meal glucose response

Blackcurrants have a beneficial effect on post-meal glucose response, and the required portion size is much smaller than previously thought, a new study from the University of Eastern Finland shows.

4 Dec 2020

Drug meant for bacterial infections can combat weight gain

A drug originally developed to treat bacterial infections has proved capable of boosting the metabolism and attenuating the weight gain induced by a fatty diet in tests with mice. The study was conducted at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP) with FAPESP's support, and the findings have just been published in the journal Science Advances.

3 Dec 2020

Researchers explain the effectiveness of anti-diabetic drug

An international team of researchers has explained the action mechanism of incretin-based medications in diabetes treatment.

27 Nov 2020

Research shows lipogenesis process is dysregulated in obesity, fatty liver disease

The production of fat in the human body is essentially regulated by gut hormones.

25 Nov 2020

Study provides key insight to better understand the development of Type 2 diabetes

Scientists have found that insulin has met an evolutionary cul-de-sac, limiting its ability to adapt to obesity and thereby rendering most people vulnerable to Type 2 diabetes.

6 Nov 2020

Reducing food intake can reduce risk of liver cancer caused by fatty liver

Liver cancer from too much fat accumulation in the liver has been increasing in many countries including Japan. In order to change this unfortunate state of affairs, it is important to improve the prognosis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

2 Nov 2020

Research projects receive BTCA awards to develop new drugs

Five research projects with exceptional promise to deliver new life-changing and health-altering therapies have received the inaugural Blavatnik Therapeutics Challenge Awards (BTCA) at Harvard Medical School.

From Harvard Medical School 30 Oct 2020

Scientists develop simple, effective fluorescent biosensors widely used in scientific and medical research

Scientists have made it simple for researchers to interpret biological processes all by making a small change to the color palette.

22 Oct 2020

New research indicates the link between diabetes and SARS-CoV-2 viral infection

Recently, researchers explained that infection by certain enteroviruses could possibly activate diabetes.

22 Oct 2020

Researchers reveal mechanism behind osimertinib resistance in some lung-cancer patients

Researchers at Kanazawa University report in Nature Communications the mechanism making some lung-cancer patients resistant to the drug osimertinib.

7 Oct 2020

Understanding beta-cell growth mechanisms may help treat metabolic diseases

New treatments for metabolic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, could emerge from a study of how a single enzyme controls the growth of the pancreatic cells that produce insulin.

5 Oct 2020

Rapeseed could replace soy as best plant-based source of protein for humans

Rapeseed has the potential to replace soy as the best plant-based source of protein for humans. In a current study, nutrition scientists at the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU), found that rapeseed protein consumption has comparable beneficial effects on human metabolism as soy protein.

1 Oct 2020

Identifying genetic factors that mitigate the risk of diabetes

A rice-based diet is a traditional food among certain east-Asian population and has ushered in several genomic adaptations that may play a role in obesity.

22 Sep 2020

Protein in the pancreas protects beta-cells from high-fat diet induced stress

Every time we eat, the glucose level in our body goes up. This spurs our pancreatic machinery into action and through intricate physiological mechanisms, appropriate amounts of insulin are produced, our blood glucose levels are controlled, and we remain healthy.

17 Sep 2020

Study offers insight on how muscles and fat tissue communicate to improve fitness

Why does exercise training make you more fit? It's well established that exercising enhances insulin sensitivity and improves our metabolism that, in turn, increases exercise performance. But the biological mechanisms underlying this adaptation are not fully understood.

15 Sep 2020

Treatments targeting the gut microbiome can protect space travelers from adverse health problems

Space travelers who spend long periods of time in space can experience health problems, such as adverse effects on metabolism, and immunity.

9 Sep 2020

Study shows different cell response offers more control to muscles

Slight variations in individual muscle cell contractions enable the whole muscle to bend with more precision and control.

2 Sep 2020

New method shows promise for treating diabetes and obesity

Obesity, the leading cause of type 2 diabetes and chronic illnesses, will collectively kill more people around the world in 2020 than COVID-19 coronavirus.

1 Sep 2020

Study shows how DUSP8 protein regulates glucose tolerance, insulin sensitivity

The brain plays a major role in controlling our blood glucose levels. In type 2 diabetics this glucose metabolism brain control is often dysfunctional. Genetic components for this phenomenon have so far remained elusive.

24 Aug 2020

Study examines the impact of low-carb, high-fat diet in older people

A new study, published in Nutrition and Metabolism, from researchers with the University of Alabama at Birmingham's Nutrition Obesity Research Center observed improvements in body composition, fat distribution and metabolic health in response to an eight-week, very low-carbohydrate diet.

21 Aug 2020