http://medicineworld.org/blogs/diabetes/diabetes-watch-blog.html Diabetes watch blog from medicineworld.org adds a personal touch to the stories related to diabetes. This diabetes watch blog brings you stories of success, stories of endurance and latest news and research related to diabetes. Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT en-us http://medicineworld.org/images/diabetes-blog.jpg http://medicineworld.org/blogs/diabetes/diabetes-watch-blog.html 90 98 http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/2-2010/possible-source-of-beta-cell-destruction.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/2-2010/possible-source-of-beta-cell-destruction.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Doctors at Eastern Virginia Medical School's Strelitz Diabetes Center have been stalking the culprit responsible for Type 1 diabetes. Now, they are one step closer. Members of a research team at the center, led by Jerry Nadler, MD, professor and chair of internal medicine and director of the center, have been studying the role of the enzyme 12-Lipoxygenase (12-LO) in the development of Type 1 diabetes. They hope that targeting this enzyme will hold the key to a cure........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/8-2009/noninsulin-producing-alpha-cells-in-the-pancreas.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/8-2009/noninsulin-producing-alpha-cells-in-the-pancreas.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT In findings that add to the prospects of regenerating insulin-producing cells in people with type 1 diabetes, scientists in Europe -- co-funded by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation -- have shown that insulin-producing beta cells can be derived from non-insulin-producing cells in the pancreas........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/5-2009/triglycerides-implicated-in-diabetes-nerve-loss.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/5-2009/triglycerides-implicated-in-diabetes-nerve-loss.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT ANN ARBOR, Mich. A common blood test for triglycerides a well-known cardiovascular disease risk factor may also for the first time allow doctors to predict which patients with diabetes are more likely to develop the serious, common complication of neuropathy. In a study now online in the journal Diabetes, University of Michigan and Wayne State University scientists analyzed data from 427 diabetes patients with neuropathy, a condition in which nerves are damaged or lost with resulting numbness, tingling and pain, often in the hands, arms, legs and feet. The data revealed that if a patient had elevated triglycerides, he or she was significantly more likely to experience worsening neuropathy over a period of one year. Other factors, such as higher levels of other fats in the blood or of blood glucose, did not turn out to be significant. The study will appear in print in the journal's July issue........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/5-2009/how-high-glucose-damages-blood-vessels.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/5-2009/how-high-glucose-damages-blood-vessels.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT New evidence of how the elevated glucose levels that occur in diabetes damage blood vessels may lead to novel strategies for blocking the destruction, Medical College of Georgia scientists say. They found a decreased ability of blood vessels to relax resulted from increased activity of a natural mechanism for altering protein form and function, says Dr. Rita C.Tostes, physiologist in the MCG School of Medicine........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/3-2009/how-to-control-high-blood-sugar.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/3-2009/how-to-control-high-blood-sugar.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Researchers are closer to understanding which proteins help control blood sugar, or glucose, during and after exercise. This understanding could lead to new drug therapies or more effective exercise to prevent Type 2 diabetes and other health problems linked to having high blood sugar. Insulin resistance happens when insulin produced by the body doesn't properly stimulate the transport of glucose into the cells for energy. Too much glucose in the bloodstream can cause a host of medical problems, including Type 2 diabetes, said Gregory Cartee, professor at the University of Michigan School of Kinesiology........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/2-2009/insulin-analogues-or-insulin.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/2-2009/insulin-analogues-or-insulin.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Insulin analogues are modified human insulins developed to address the limitations of human insulins which do not always respond to increased blood glucose levels in the same way as insulin that is naturally secreted by the body. A comprehensive systematic review by Sumeet Singh and his colleagues http://www.cmaj.ca/press/pg385.pdf. looked at outcomes linked to the use of rapid- and long-acting insulin analogues in adult and childhood type 1 and type 2 diabetes as well as gestational diabetes........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/1-2009/diabetes-dementia-and-brain-injuries.html http://medicineworld.org/stories/lead/1-2009/diabetes-dementia-and-brain-injuries.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Patients with dementia and diabetes appear to display a different pattern of injuries in their brains than patients with dementia but without diabetes, as per an article posted online today that will appear in the March print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "The association between diabetes mellitus and increased risk for dementia in the elderly is well documented," the authors write as background information in the article. Several possible mechanisms have been proposed for this association, including the direct effects of high blood glucose and insulin, the build-up of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain and the effects of diabetes-related vascular disease on blood vessels in the brain........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/1-2009/controlling-diabetes-with-low-carbohydrate-diet.html http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/1-2009/controlling-diabetes-with-low-carbohydrate-diet.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT In a six-month comparison of low-carb diets, one that encourages eating carbohydrates with the lowest-possible rating on the glycemic index leads to greater improvement in blood sugar control, as per Duke University Medical Center researchers. Patients who followed the no-glycemic diet experienced more frequent reductions, and in some cases elimination, of their need for medicine to control type 2 diabetes, as per main author Eric Westman, MD, director of Duke's Lifestyle Medicine Program. The findings are published online in Nutrition and Metabolism....... ]]> http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/12-2008/type-1-diabetes-and-celiac-disease-linked.html http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/12-2008/type-1-diabetes-and-celiac-disease-linked.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Type 1 (juvenile) diabetes and celiac disease appear to share a common genetic origin, researchers at the University of Cambridge and Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, have confirmed. Their findings, which are reported in this week's edition of the New England Journal (NEJM), identified seven chromosome regions which are shared between the two diseases. The research suggests that type 1 diabetes and celiac disease may be caused by common underlying mechanisms such as autoimmunity-related tissue damage and intolerance to dietary antigens (foreign substances which prompt an immune response)........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/11-2008/more-data-on-key-genes-in-diabetes.html http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/11-2008/more-data-on-key-genes-in-diabetes.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT One of the most reliable indicators to predict that a person will develop type 2 diabetes is the presence of insulin resistance. Insulin is produced in the pancreas and is the hormone responsible for ensuring that glucose reaches several tissues and organs in the body, such as muscles. Typically insulin resistance is characterized by the lack of tissue response to insulin and is counteracted by a greater production of insulin by the pancreas. When the pancreas does not have the capacity to produce the amount of insulin mandatory for tissues to receive glucose, glucose in blood increases to pathological levels and the individual goes from being insulin-resistant to suffering type 2 diabetes. Eventhough it is unclear what makes people develop insulin resistance, several studies report that resistant subjects show functional alterations in mitochondria. These intracellular organelles are responsible for transforming glucose into energy that the cell will then use to perform several functions. A study performed by the researcher Marc Liesa, a member of Antoni Zorzano's lab at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona), describes a new control pathway of a gene responsible for mitochrondrial fusion, a process that contributes to the correct function of these organelles. This pathway could therefore be a key component in the development of insulin resistance. The results of this study have been reported in the scientific journal PloS One........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/10-2008/type-1-diabetes-not-so-much-bad-genes.html http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/10-2008/type-1-diabetes-not-so-much-bad-genes.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Investigators combing the genome in the hope of finding genetic variants responsible for triggering early-onset diabetes may be looking in the wrong place, new research at the Stanford University School of Medicine suggests. Early-onset diabetes, also known as type-1 diabetes, is an autoimmune disease, caused when the immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing cells in a person's pancreas........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/10-2008/green-tea-may-delay-onset-of-type-1-diabetes.html http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/10-2008/green-tea-may-delay-onset-of-type-1-diabetes.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT A powerful antioxidant in green tea may prevent or delay the onset of type 1 diabetes, Medical College of Georgia scientists say. Scientists were testing EGCG, green tea's predominant antioxidant, in a laboratory mouse with type 1 diabetes and primary Sjogren's syndrome, which damages moisture-producing glands, causing dry mouth and eyes........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/10-2008/find-genes-for-type-1-diabetes.html http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/10-2008/find-genes-for-type-1-diabetes.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Genetics scientists have identified two novel gene locations that raise the risk of type 1 diabetes. As they continue to reveal pieces of the complicated genetic puzzle for this disease, the scientists expect to improve predictive tests and devise preventive strategies. "As we add to our knowledge of the biology of type 1 diabetes and better understand details of the disease's genetic risk, we will be able to develop better diagnostic tests that meaningfully predict who will develop diabetes," said study leader Hakon Hakonarson, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Center for Applied Genomics at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/6-2008/unique-drug-combination-for-type-i-diabetes.html http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/6-2008/unique-drug-combination-for-type-i-diabetes.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Promising results from a study that tested a new approach for reversing Type 1 diabetes are being presented this week at the American Diabetes Association's 68th Annual Scientific Session in San Francisco. The study tested the combination of Lisofylline (LSF), a drug that is being developed to halt immune damage to insulin producing cells, and Islet Neogenesis Associated Protein peptide (INGAP), a drug based on a naturally occurring protein produced by the pancreas. (ADA abstract number: 1620-P Unique Drug Combination for Reversal of Type 1 Diabetes, by Tersey, Carter, Kropf, Rosenberg, Nadler, available online at http://scientificsessions.diabetes.org)........ ]]> http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/5-2008/natural-compounds-in-cocoa-and-type-2-diabetes.html http://medicineworld.org/cancer/lead/5-2008/natural-compounds-in-cocoa-and-type-2-diabetes.html Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:54:13 GMT Researchers have observed that consuming cocoa flavanols naturally occurring compounds in cocoa may offer a benefit to those affected by type-2 diabetes. Consuming a cocoa flavanol-rich beverage daily may have the potential to positively impact the blood vessel dysfunction linked to diabetes, suggests a first-of-its-kind study recently reported in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology by an international group of scientists. Study participants who regularly consumed a cocoa flavanol-rich beverage made using the Mars, Incorporated Cocoapro process experienced a 30 percent improvement in measured vessel function at the completion of a 30-day trial........ ]]>