Related topics: type 2 diabetes , diabetes , type 1 diabetes , insulin resistance , beta cells
Insulin
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Insulin is a hormone that has extensive effects on metabolism and other body functions, such as vascular compliance. Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle, and fat tissue to take up glucose from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle, and stopping use of fat as an energy source. When insulin is absent (or low), glucose is not taken up by body cells, and the body begins to use fat as an energy source, for example, by transfer of lipids from adipose tissue to the liver for mobilization as an energy source. As its level is a central metabolic control mechanism, its status is also used as a control signal to other body systems (such as amino acid uptake by body cells). It has several other anabolic effects throughout the body. When control of insulin levels fails, diabetes mellitus results.
Insulin is used medically to treat some forms of diabetes mellitus. Patients with Type 1 diabetes mellitus depend on external insulin (most commonly injected subcutaneously) for their survival because the hormone is no longer produced internally. Patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus are insulin resistant, and because of such resistance, may suffer from a relative insulin deficiency. Some patients with Type 2 diabetes may eventually require insulin when other medications fail to control blood glucose levels adequately.
Insulin is a peptide hormone composed of 51 amino acids and has a molecular weight of 5808 Da. It is produced in the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas. The name comes from the Latin insula for "island".
Insulin's structure varies slightly between species of animal. Insulin from animal sources differs somewhat in 'strength' (in carbohydrate metabolism control effects) in humans because of those variations. Porcine (pig) insulin is especially close to the human version.
For more information about Insulin, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with insulin
Study shows how substance in grapes may squeeze out diabetes
Oct 15, 2009 |
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A naturally produced molecule called resveratrol, found in the skin of red grapes, has been shown to lower insulin levels in mice when injected directly into the brain, even when the animals ate a high-fat ...
Insulin boost restores muscle growth in elderly
Sep 25, 2009 |
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When most people think of insulin, they think of diabetes — a disease that arises when, for one reason or another, insulin can't do the critical job of helping the body process sugar. But the hormone has another, less well-known ...
Noninsulin-producing alpha cells in the pancreas can be converted to insulin-producing beta cells
Aug 06, 2009 |
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In findings that add to the prospects of regenerating insulin-producing cells in people with type 1 diabetes, researchers in Europe -- co-funded by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation -- have shown that insulin-producing ...
Nanodiamonds deliver insulin for wound healing
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Jul 27, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Bacterial infection is a major health threat to patients with severe burns and other kinds of serious wounds such as traumatic bone fractures. Recent studies have identified an important new weapon for fighting ...
Brown fat cells make 'spare tires' shrink
Dec 01, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at the University of Bonn have found a new signalling pathway which stimulates the production and function of so-called brown fat cells. They propose using these cells that serve as a "natural ...
Systems biology approach provides insulin resistance insights
Nov 23, 2009 |
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Researchers from the University of California, San Diego recently offered the sharpest-yet picture of how core biochemical pathways in skeletal muscle cells and fat cells are altered in people who suffer from ...
Scientists create fruit fly model to help unravel genetics of human diabetes
Nov 02, 2009 |
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As rates of obesity, diabetes, and related disorders have reached epidemic proportions in the US in recent years, scientists are working from many angles to pinpoint the causes and contributing factors involved ...
Protein critical for insulin secretion may be contributor to diabetes
Oct 26, 2009 |
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A cellular protein from a family involved in several human diseases is crucial for the proper production and release of insulin, new research has found, suggesting that the protein might play a role in diabetes.
Study finds best use of insulin as diabetes progresses
Oct 23, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A large-scale trial in diabetes patients has provided new evidence on how best to add insulin to standard drugs to control blood sugar levels as type 2 diabetes progresses.
Could antioxidants make us more, not less, prone to diabetes? Study says yes
Oct 06, 2009 |
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We've all heard about the damage that reactive oxygen species (ROS) - aka free radicals - can do to our bodies and the sales pitches for antioxidant vitamins, skin creams or "superfoods" that can stop them. In fact, there ...
'Micro shuttle' drug delivery could mean an end to regular dosing
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Oct 02, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (3) |
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Scientists working at Queen Mary, University of London, have developed micrometer-sized capsules to safely deliver drugs inside living cells.
Genes controlling insulin can alter timing of biological clock
Sep 17, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Many of the genes that regulate insulin also alter the timing of the circadian clock, a new study has found.
Insulin, metformin do not reduce inflammatory biomarkers for diabetes patients
Sep 15, 2009 |
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In patients with recent onset type-2 diabetes, treatment with insulin or the diabetes drug metformin did not reduce inflammatory biomarkers, such as high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, although the treatment did improve ...
Diabetes drug kills cancer stem cells in combination treatment in mice
Sep 14, 2009 |
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In a one-two punch, a familiar diabetes drug reduced tumors faster and prolonged remission in mice longer than chemotherapy alone by targeting cancer stem cells, Harvard Medical School researchers reported in the September ...
Team reveals molecular mechanism underlying a form of diabetes
Sep 08, 2009 |
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By investigating a rare and severe form of diabetes in children, University of Iowa researchers have discovered a new molecular mechanism that regulates specialized pancreatic cells and insulin secretion. The mechanism involves ...
