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Diabetes Research (diabetes + research)
Selected AbstractsBIOETHNIC CONSCRIPTION: Genes, Race, and Mexicana/o Ethnicity in Diabetes ResearchCULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 1 2007MICHAEL J. MONTOYA This article is an examination of academic, corporate, and state-funded alliance of molecular, biological, computer, and clinical scientists who are conducting research into the genetic epidemiology of type 2 diabetes. Because type 2 diabetes affects human groups differently, researchers use ethnic and racial taxonomies to parse populations and social history to rationalize their categorical choices. In a process termed "bioethnic conscription," the social identities and life conditions of DNA donors are grafted into the biological explanations of human difference and disease causality in both objectionable and constructive ways. Bioethnic conscription is presented as an ethnographically sound alternative to the either,or proposition of the (R)ace,no race debate within biomedicine and anthropology. [source] Acute exercise reverses TRB3 expression in the skeletal muscle and ameliorates whole body insulin sensitivity in diabetic miceACTA PHYSIOLOGICA, Issue 1 2010A. Matos Abstract Aim:, TRB3 became of major interest in diabetes research when it was shown to interact with and inhibit the activity of Akt. Conversely, physical exercise has been linked to improved glucose homeostasis. Thus, the current study was designed to investigate the effects of acute exercise on TRB3 expression and whole body insulin sensitivity in obese diabetic mice. Methods:, Male leptin-deficient (ob/ob) mice swam for two 3-h-long bouts, separated by a 45-min rest period. After the second bout of exercise, food was withdrawn 6 h before antibody analysis. Eight hours after the exercise protocol, the mice were submitted to an insulin tolerance test (ITT). Gastrocnemius muscle samples were evaluated for insulin receptor (IR) and IRS-1 tyrosine phosphorylation, Akt serine phosphorylation, TRB3/Akt association and membrane GLUT4 expression. Results:, Western blot analysis showed that TRB3 expression was reduced in the gastrocnemius of leptin-deficient (ob/ob) mice submitted to exercise when compared with respective ob/ob mice at rest. In parallel, there was an increase in the insulin-signalling pathway in skeletal muscle from leptin-deficient mice after exercise. Furthermore, the GLUT4 membrane expression was increased in the muscle after the exercise protocol. Finally, a single session of exercise improved the glucose disappearance (KITT) rate in ob/ob mice. Conclusion:, Our results demonstrate that acute exercise reverses TRB3 expression and insulin signalling restoration in muscle. Thus, these results provide new insights into the mechanism by which physical activity ameliorates whole body insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetes. [source] The role of Lay Review Committees in diabetes researchDIABETES/METABOLISM: RESEARCH AND REVIEWS, Issue 4 2003David P. Stenger Abstract Type 1 diabetes is unique among disease entities in having a large voluntary health nonprofit organization (the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) that employs the process of review by laypersons (following a review by scientists) in selecting the recipients of its funding awards to individual investigators/trainees: grants, career-development awards, fellowships, and ,innovative grants.' Therefore, that organization can be a suitable model on which an examination of lay review can be based. This paper summarizes (1) the history of how lay review originated and (2) this foundation's experience with it, (3) assesses the impact of the procedure on the discipline of diabetes science, and (4) examines the role it might play in the future, given the current state of that discipline. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Glucose-responsive insulin-producing cells from stem cellsDIABETES/METABOLISM: RESEARCH AND REVIEWS, Issue 6 2002David J. Kaczorowski Abstract Recent success with immunosuppression following islet cell transplantation offers hope that a cell transplantation treatment for type 1 (juvenile) diabetes may be possible if sufficient quantities of safe and effective cells can be produced. For the treatment of type 1 diabetes, the two therapeutically essential functions are the ability to monitor blood glucose levels and the production of corresponding and sufficient levels of mature insulin to maintain glycemic control. Stem cells can replicate themselves and produce cells that take on more specialized functions. If a source of stem cells capable of yielding glucose-responsive insulin-producing (GRIP) cells can be identified, then transplantation-based treatment for type 1 diabetes may become widely available. Currently, stem cells from embryonic and adult sources are being investigated for their ability to proliferate and differentiate into cells with GRIP function. Human embryonic pluripotent stem cells, commonly referred to as embryonic stem (ES) cells and embryonic germ (EG) cells, have received significant attention owing to their broad capacity to differentiate and ability to proliferate well in culture. Their application to diabetes research is of particular promise, as it has been demonstrated that mouse ES cells are capable of producing cells able to normalize glucose levels of diabetic mice, and human ES cells can differentiate into cells capable of insulin production. Cells with GRIP function have also been derived from stem cells residing in adult organisms, here referred to as endogenous stem cell sources. Independent of source, stem cells capable of producing cells with GRIP function may provide a widely available cell transplantation treatment for type 1 diabetes. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Not all roads lead to Rome,a review of quality of life measurement in adults with diabetesDIABETIC MEDICINE, Issue 4 2009J. Speight Abstract Aims Quality of life (QoL) is recognized widely as an important health outcome in diabetes, where the burden of self-management places great demands on the individual. However, the concept of QoL remains ambiguous and poorly defined. The aim of our review is to clarify the measurement of QoL in terms of conceptualization, terminology and psychometric properties, to review the instruments that have been used most frequently to assess QoL in diabetes research and make recommendations for how to select measures appropriately. Methods A systematic literature search was conducted to identify the ten measures most frequently used to assess QoL in diabetes research (including clinical trials) from 1995 to March 2008. Results Six thousand and eight-five abstracts were identified and screened for instrument names. Of the ten instruments most frequently used to assess ,QoL', only three actually do so [i.e. the generic World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL) and the diabetes-specific Diabetes Quality of Life (DQOL) and Audit of Diabetes-Dependent Quality of Life (ADDQoL)]. Seven instruments more accurately measure health status [Short-Form 36 (SF-36), EuroQoL 5-Dimension (EQ-5D)], treatment satisfaction [Diabetes Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire (DTSQ)] and psychological well-being [Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Well-Being Questionnaire (W-BQ), Problem Areas in Diabetes (PAID)]. Conclusions No single measure can suit every purpose or application but, when measures are selected inappropriately and data misinterpreted, any conclusions drawn are fundamentally flawed. If we value QoL as a therapeutic goal, we must ensure that the instruments we use are both valid and reliable. QoL assessment has the proven potential to identify ways in which treatments can be tailored to reduce the burden of diabetes. With careful consideration, appropriate measures can be selected and truly robust assessments undertaken successfully. [source] Animal models of diabetes mellitusDIABETIC MEDICINE, Issue 4 2005D. A. Rees Abstract Animal models have been used extensively in diabetes research. Early studies used pancreatectomised dogs to confirm the central role of the pancreas in glucose homeostasis, culminating in the discovery and purification of insulin. Today, animal experimentation is contentious and subject to legal and ethical restrictions that vary throughout the world. Most experiments are carried out on rodents, although some studies are still performed on larger animals. Several toxins, including streptozotocin and alloxan, induce hyperglycaemia in rats and mice. Selective inbreeding has produced several strains of animal that are considered reasonable models of Type 1 diabetes, Type 2 diabetes and related phenotypes such as obesity and insulin resistance. Apart from their use in studying the pathogenesis of the disease and its complications, all new treatments for diabetes, including islet cell transplantation and preventative strategies, are initially investigated in animals. In recent years, molecular biological techniques have produced a large number of new animal models for the study of diabetes, including knock-in, generalized knock-out and tissue-specific knockout mice. [source] Mistaken priorities in diabetes researchDIABETIC MEDICINE, Issue 4 2002S. Heller No abstract is available for this article. [source] Assessment of the benefits of user involvement in health research from the Warwick Diabetes Care Research User Group: a qualitative case studyHEALTH EXPECTATIONS, Issue 3 2007Antje Lindenmeyer PhD Abstract Objective, To assess the benefits of involving health-care users in diabetes research. Design and participants, For this qualitative case study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with researchers who had worked extensively with the group. During regular meetings of the Research User Group, members discussed their views of the group's effectiveness as part of the meeting's agenda. Interviews and discussions were transcribed, coded using N-Vivo software and analysed using constant comparative methods. Results, Involvement of users in research was generally seen as contributing to effective and meaningful research. However, the group should not be considered to be representative of the patient population or participants of future trials. An important contributor to the group's success was its longstanding nature, enabling users to gain more insight into research and form constructive working relationships with researchers. The user-led nature of the group asserted itself, especially, in the language used during group meetings. A partial shift of power from researchers to users was generally acknowledged. Users' main contribution was their practical expertise in living with diabetes, but their involvement also helped researchers to remain connected to the ,real world' in which research would be applied. While the group's work fulfilled established principles of consumer involvement in research, important contributions relying on personal interaction between users and researchers were hard to evaluate by process measures alone. Conclusions, We demonstrated the feasibility, acceptability and effectiveness of this longstanding, experienced, lay-led research advisory group. Its impact on research stems from the continuing interaction between researchers and users, and the general ethos of learning from each other in an on-going process. Both process measures and qualitative interviews with stakeholders are needed to evaluate the contributions of service users to health research. [source] Conflict of interest in diabetes researchJOURNAL OF DIABETES, Issue 1 2010Lance K. Stell No abstract is available for this article. [source] An islet in distress: , cell failure in type 2 diabetesJOURNAL OF DIABETES INVESTIGATION, Issue 4 2010Takeshi Ogihara Abstract Over 200 million people worldwide suffer from diabetes, a disorder of glucose homeostasis. The majority of these individuals are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. It has traditionally been thought that tissue resistance to the action of insulin is the primary defect in type 2 diabetes. However, recent longitudinal and genome-wide association studies have shown that insulin resistance is more likely to be a precondition, and that the failure of the pancreatic , cell to meet the increased insulin requirements is the triggering factor in the development of type 2 diabetes. A major emphasis in diabetes research has therefore shifted to understanding the causes of , cell failure. Collectively, these studies have implicated a complex network of triggers, which activate intersecting execution pathways leading to , cell dysfunction and death. In the present review, we discuss these triggers (glucotoxicity, lipotoxicity, amyloid and cytokines) with respect to the pathways they activate (oxidative stress, inflammation and endoplasmic reticulum stress) and propose a model for understanding , cell failure in type 2 diabetes. (J Diabetes Invest, doi: 10.1111/j.2040-1124.2010.00021.x, 2010) [source] Mistakes, misunderstandings and controversies in diabetes: A review and personal accountJOURNAL OF DIABETES INVESTIGATION, Issue 3 2010Carl Erik Mogensen Abstract A number of controversies in diabetes have had too little attention. I discuss the following issues: (i) drug therapy; (ii) genetics; (iii) antihypertensive treatment in patients with normoalbuminuria and with abnormal albuminuria; (iv) insulin analogs; (v) cancer in diabetes; (vi) hypophysectomy; (vii) renal biopsy; (viii) low protein diet; and (ix) glycated hemoglobin. A closer look at these items is required in order to have a more realistic picture of diabetes research. A scheme of other controversies is also provided. (J Diabetes Invest, doi: 10.1111/j.2040-1124.2010.00012.x, 2010) [source] Emerging Concepts in the Pathophysiology of Type 2 Diabetes MellitusMOUNT SINAI JOURNAL OF MEDICINE: A JOURNAL OF PERSONALIZED AND TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE, Issue 3 2009Prasanth N. Surampudi MD Abstract Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a multifactorial metabolic disorder. It is characterized by chronic hyperglycemia, insulin resistance, and a relative insulin secretion defect. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus has risen worldwide in large part because of an increase in obesity and sedentary lifestyles. The underlying pathophysiology and complications of type 2 diabetes mellitus are still being elucidated. Recent advances in diabetes research have helped us to gain a better understanding about insulin resistance and insulin secretion defects. The evolving understanding about the influence of the incretin effect, insulin signal transduction, adipose tissue, intra,islet cell communication, and inflammation is changing the way in which we view type 2 diabetes mellitus. This new understanding will eventually provide us with new treatment approaches to help patients who have type 2 diabetes mellitus. This article gives a review of the current and emerging concepts of the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Mt Sinai J Med 76: 216,226, 2009. © 2009 Mount Sinai School of Medicine [source] The National Research Strategy: implications for diabetes research in the NHSPRACTICAL DIABETES INTERNATIONAL (INCORPORATING CARDIABETES), Issue 9 2001Kate Greenwood Professor No abstract is available for this article. [source] European diabetes research: hopes and threatsPRACTICAL DIABETES INTERNATIONAL (INCORPORATING CARDIABETES), Issue 9 2001Article first published online: 11 JAN 200 In an exclusive interview with Practical Diabetes International, the incoming President of the EASD, Philippe Halban (Geneva, Switzerland), gave an optimistic forecast , and a warning , regarding European diabetes research. [source] | ||||||||||