No one understands yet exactly what regulates the release of insulin from the beta cells in the pancreas. We just know that the process is disrupted when you have diabetes, almost completely in the case of type 1 diabetes and partially when you have type 2.
Now researchers in several countries, including Germany, Great Britain, Canada, and Italy, have discovered a new clue. It seems that certain beta cells are "leader" cells or "hub" cells, and they control the other beta cells. This is like the heart's sinoatrial node (called the "pacemaker of the heart"), which controls the beating of other heart cells. And some researchers refer to the leader cells in the pancreas as pacemakers.
The studies show that if you selectively delete the leader cells in animal models of diabetes, the response to glucose becomes disrupted. It is known that in type 2 diabetes, the normally regular pulses of insulin that occur even when fasting are lost. Could this be because the leader cells are damaged? If so, why are they damaged? Are they more sensitive to high glucose and other toxins than the other beta cells?
The researchers found that the coordination of responses controlled by the leader cells was impaired in human islets taken from subjects with diabetes.
This is all fascinating albeit early days. This new study doesn't have any practical utility yet, but it could lead to more research that would have practical application.
If the heart's pacemaker isn't working well, they can give you an artificial pacemaker. The beta cell pacemakers wouldn't be as easy to replace. But perhaps now that it's known that there are such pancreas pacemakers, someone will figure out how to rejuvenate them.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment