Pioglitazone has been demonstrated to have beneficial effects on cardiovascular outcomes. However, little is known about its effect on cardiac remodeling associated with diabetic nephropathy. Therefore, this study was designed to study the effects of pioglitazone on cardiac fibrosis and hypertrophy in a rat model of diabetic nephropathy. For this ...

BACKGROUND: Hyperglycemia is the most important risk factor in the progression of renal fibrosis in diabetic kidney. Based on previous studies, interleukin-7 (IL-7) may exert antifibrotic activities in pulmonary fibrosis model. However, the role of IL-7 in the pathogenesis of renal tubulointerstitial fibrosis remains unclear. Thus, we hereby elucidate the ...

TGF-β1 upregulates microRNA-192 (miR-192) in cultured glomerular mesangial cells and in glomeruli from diabetic mice. miR-192 not only increases collagen expression by targeting the E-box repressors Zeb1/2 but also modulates other renal miRNAs, suggesting that it may be a therapeutic target for diabetic nephropathy. We evaluated the efficacy of a ...

The present study was designed to evaluate the levels of eight elements including lithium, zinc, chromium, copper, iron, manganese, nickel and vanadium in whole blood of type-2 diabetes patients, to compare them with age-matched healthy controls and to investigate the feasibility of combining them with an ensemble model for diagnosing ...

Diabetes mellitus is associated with altered iron homeostasis that can potentially effect reactive oxygen species generation and contribute to diabetes-related complications. We investigated, by quantitative polymerase chain reaction, whether the expression of liver hepcidin, ferritin, and TfR-1 is altered in diabetes. Rats in the control (C) group received a standard ...

BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes is a risk factor for progression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) to fibrosis and cirrhosis. We examined the prevalence of advanced liver disease in people with type 2 diabetes and analysed the effectiveness of liver function tests (LFTs) as a screening tool. METHODS: Participants (n = 939, ...

Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, Notarnicola S, Lorini R, Bertasi S, Raia V, Cialdella P, Haupt R. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Background: Early stages of glucose metabolism impairment are a period at risk ...

Arginase can cause vascular dysfunction by competing with nitric oxide synthase for L-arginine and by increasing cell proliferation and collagen formation which promote vascular fibrosis/stiffening. We have shown that increased arginase expression/activity contribute to vascular endothelial cell (EC) dysfunction. Here, we examined the roles of the two arginase isoforms, arginase ...

Pancreatic iron overload and diabetes mellitus (DM) are common in thalassemia major patients. However, the relationship between iron stores and glucose disturbances is not well defined. We used a frequently sampled oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), coupled with mathematical modeling, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to examine the impact of ...

Islet fibrosis could be important in the progression of pancreatic beta cell failure in type 2 diabetes. It is known that oxidative stress is involved in the pancreatic fibrosis through the activation of pancreatic stellate cells. However, no study has investigated the in vivo effects of antioxidants on islet fibrogenesis ...

OBJECTIVERecently we have shown that calpain-1 activation contributes to cardiomyocyte apoptosis induced by hyperglycemia. This study was undertaken to investigate whether targeted disruption of calpain would reduce myocardial hypertrophy and fibrosis in mouse models of type 1 diabetes.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSDiabetes in mice was induced by injection of streptozotocin (STZ), ...

Serum proteins exist in a state of higher glycation among individuals with poor glycemic control, notably diabetics. These non-enzymatic modifications via the Maillard reaction have far reaching effects on metabolism and regulation, and may be responsible for increased infection rates within this population. Here we explore the effects of glycation ...

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Many cystic fibrosis patients are vitamin D-insufficient. Cystic fibrosis-related diabetes is a major complication of cystic fibrosis. The literature suggests that vitamin D might possess certain glucose-lowering properties. We aimed to assess the relationship between vitamin D and cystic fibrosis-related glucose intolerance. METHODS: We enrolled 898 cystic fibrosis patients ...

To evaluate certain anthropometric, clinical and laboratory features indicating liver fibrosis in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and to establish the noninvasive markers for liver fibrosis. Eighty-one patients (40 male, 41 female) who were diagnosed with fatty liver by ultrasonographic examination and fulfilled the inclusion criteria participated in the study. Anamnesis, anthropometric, clinical ...

INTRODUCTION: : cardiac complication in diabetic patients remained high despite very good control of blood glucose. Our hypothesis is that it was associated with a persistently high endothelin-1 (ET-1) level. To clarify this notion we created a diabetic model by streptozotocin (STZ) injection. Since dysfunction of endothelial cells, which are ...

BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus promotes atrial structural remodeling, thereby producing atrial arrhythmogenicity, where advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs) and their receptor (RAGE) are implicated to play a role in the pathogenesis. PURPOSE: We investigated the effects of candesartan, an angiotensin type II receptor blocker, on the diabetes-induced atrial structural change. METHODS AND ...

Transforming Growth Factor-beta (TGF-β) is a pro-sclerotic cytokine widely associated with the development of fibrosis in diabetic nephropathy. Central to the underlying pathology of tubulointerstitial fibrosis is epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), or the trans-differentiation of tubular epithelial cells into myofibroblasts. This process is accompanied by a number of key morphological and ...

Aim:To investigate whether activation of RhoA/Rho kinase (ROCK) is involved in myocardial fibrosis in diabetic hearts.Methods:A rat model of type 2 diabetes was established using high fat diet combined with streptozotocin (30 mg/kg, ip). Animals were randomly divided into 3 groups: control rats, untreated diabetic rats that received vehicle and ...

Chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is generally a slowly progressive disease, but some factors associated with rapid progression have been identified. Steatosis, independently of its metabolic or viral origin, leads to liver injury and fibrosis. There are suggestions that hepatitis C virus may contribute to a wide spectrum of metabolic disturbances-namely, ...

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Epidemiological and experimental evidence suggests that uric acid has a role in the aetiology of type 2 diabetes. Using a Mendelian randomisation approach, we investigated whether there is evidence for a causal role of serum uric acid for development of type 2 diabetes. METHODS: We examined the associations of ...

Recently, YKL-40 has been identified as a new inflammatory marker of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), while leptin is one of the most important adipose derived hormones. However, the relationship between them has not been elucidated. Therefore this study aimed to study their correlation in obese T2DM patients.

Context: Recently, it has been shown that an allele in the adiponutrin (PNPLA3) gene was strongly associated with increased liver fat content (LFC) and liver fibrosis independent of visceral adiposity and insulin resistance. Objective: In this study, we set out to determine whether the PNPLA3 rs738409 polymorphism was associated with ...

The role of ethnicity in determining disease severity in NASH remains unclear. To better understand this, we recruited 152 subjects with biopsy-proven NASH (Hispanics: 63%; Caucasians: 37%). Both groups were well matched for age, gender and total body fat. We measured: 1) liver fat (LFAT) by magnetic resonance imaging and ...

This study evaluated the effects of the interaction of diabetes and a carbonyl iron supplemented on hepatic and pancreatic tissues, oxidative stress markers and liver peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α expressions. Hamsters were divided: Control which received a standard AIN 93 diet; Control Iron, composed of control animals that received a diet ...

In cystic fibrosis, gradual pancreatic destruction causes progressive insulin deficiency, culminating in cystic fibrosis related diabetes (CFRD). As a consequence of insulin deficiency, elevated glucose levels can be detected (well before the diagnosis of CFRD), by continuous ambulatory subcutaneous interstitial fluid glucose monitoring or 30-min sampled oral glucose tolerance test ...

OBJECTIVE Diabetes is common in cystic fibrosis and increases the risk of death, yet the role of hyperglycemia remains unproven. An association between glycemia and mortality would provide compelling evidence to support glucose lowering in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes (CFRD). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Using the U.K. Cystic Fibrosis Registry, we ...

Persistent hyperglycemia in diabetic patients has been associated with cardiac hypertrophy, myocardial fibrosis and cardiac dysfunction. However, the underlying mechanisms of this association have yet to be fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to investigate the expression and function of microRNAs (miRNAs) in diabetic cardiomyopathy. miRNA expression profiles ...

Chronic pressure-overload and diabetes mellitus are two frequent disorders affecting the heart. We aimed to characterize myocardial structural and functional changes induced by both conditions. Pressure-overload was established in Wistar-han male rats by supra-renal aortic banding. Six-weeks later, diabetes was induced by streptozotocin (65 mg/kg,ip), resulting in four groups: SHAM, banding ...

Few studies have focused on the quantification of glycemic lability and hypoglycemic events in Asian patients with type 1 diabetes; therefore, we conducted a study to assess glycemic lability and the severity of hypoglycemia in type 1 diabetic patients in Korea. A total of 124 type 1 diabetic patients were ...

AIM: Iron may contribute to the pathogenesis of Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). The aim of this study was to determine iron regulator hepcidin and iron metabolic parameters in Type 2 DM patients, the relationships among them were evaluated in this specific sub-groups. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included sixty-four ...

The aim of this study was to determine if once daily insulin detemir reverses decline in weight and lung function in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). 12 patients with early insulin deficiency and six with CF related diabetes (aged 7.2-18.1 years) were treated for a median of 0.8 years. Changes ...

Diabetic patients have a high risk of pulmonary disorders that are usually associated with restrictive impairment of lung function, suggesting a fibrotic process (van den Borst et al. Chest 138: 393-406, 2010; Ehrlich et al. Diabetes Care 33:55-60, 2010). The present study was undertaken to define whether and how diabetes ...

An increased oxidative stress and a decreased life span of erythrocytes (RBCs) are reported in patients with diabetes. Aim of this study was to assess in RBCs from patients with type 2 diabetes whether downstream effector mechanisms of apoptosis, such as activation of caspase-3, is operative, and whether an iron-related ...

Context: Increased liver fat (LF) is associated with insulin resistance. However, a considerable individual variability between LF and insulin sensitivity (IS) is observed, and at equal levels of LF, insulin-resistant as well as insulin-sensitive individuals are found. Objective: Our objective was to study whether hepatic iron load (HIL) explains some ...

Diabetes mellitus is characterized by hyperglycemia, which induces oxidative stress and perturbs a number of pathways, leading to tissue injury. One of the pathological responses to tissue injury is the development of fibrosis and cell death. Enalapril is a non-thiol angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor that is commonly used in the treatment ...

Obesity is the major risk factor for the development of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes. BMI is widely used as a surrogate measure of obesity, but underestimates the prevalence of obesity, defined as an excess of body fat. We assessed the presence of impaired glucose tolerance or impaired fasting glucose ...

The number of islets available (yield) is an important predictor of insulin independence after islet autotransplantation (IAT) done at the time of total pancreatectomy to treat painful chronic pancreatitis. The aim of this study was to correlate histopathologic findings with islet yield and graft function. Pancreatic histopathology was examined in ...

Obesity is a global epidemic with more than 1 billion overweight adults and at least 300 million obese patients worldwide. Diabetes is characterized by a defect in insulin secretion or a decrease in sensitivity to insulin, which results in elevated fasting blood glucose. Both obesity and elevated fasting glucose are ...

Background/Aims: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is highly prevalent in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, data regarding the prevalence and correlates of its histopathological stages are scarce. The aim was to investigate the prevalence and correlates of the more severe histopathological features of NAFLD, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and advanced ...

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether androgen excess contributes to the increased body iron stores of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) by stimulating erythropoietic activity, by measuring serum soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR) concentrations and its ratio to ferritin levels in patients with PCOS, as surrogate markers of erythropoietic activity and of the appropriateness ...

Glycyrrhizin is the main water-soluble constituent of the root of liquorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra). The study investigates the effect of glycyrrhizin on streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic changes and associated oxidative stress, including haemoglobin-induced free iron-mediated oxidative reactions. Male Wistar rats were grouped as normal control, STZ-induced diabetic control, normal treated with glycyrrhizin, ...

Low HDL cholesterol and hypertriglyceridemia as well as lowering of LDL cholesterol with statins increase the risk of T2DM. We discuss the recent findings on the effects of lipoproteins and cholesterol on the function and survival of pancreatic β-cells as well as on obesity and insulin sensitivity of muscle and ...

Diabetic complications threaten diabetic patients by damaging many organs. Emerging evidence indicates that diabetes can increase the risk of pulmonary dysfunction. Although early epidemiological studies from different populations of whether diabetes was an independent risk for pulmonary dysfunction were inconclusive, recent epidemiological studies and systemic reviews clearly indicate that diabetes ...

The incidence and severity of atherosclerotic vascular disease are increased in diabetic patients, in part because of increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Previously, we found both increased atherosclerosis and arterial protein oxidation 6 months after streptozotocin-induced diabetes in monkeys fed an atherogenic diet, the pattern of which was ...

Diabetic myocardiopathy is characterized by myocardial interstitial fibrosis and cardiac dysfunction. Statins were found to exert protective effects on cardiovascular disease by suppressing activation of small G proteins, independently of their lipid-lowering effect. The study investigated the effect of fluvastatin on myocardial interstitial fibrosis, cardiac function and mechanism of its ...

Objective We evaluated patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) and compared the clinical and pathological features of steatosis and metabolic syndrome to identify the risk factors for CHC with severe fibrosis. Methods One hundred seventy-one patients with biopsy-confirmed CHC were included in the study: 90 males and 81 females, age ...

Cystic fibrosis related diabetes (CFRD) is an insulinopenic condition. We aimed to detect insulinopenia early and to evaluate the impact of low dose insulin on nutritional status and forced expiratory volume in first second (FEV1). Out of 142 cystic fibrosis patients (CFpts) older than 10 years, 28 with abnormal oral ...

Diabetic nephropathy is always accompanied by tubulointerstitial damage. The mechanisms and the cells involved are not entirely clarified. The damaged tubules may regenerate or undergo necrosis or apoptosis. The purpose of this work was to investigate the structural transformations of both interstitial cells and extracellular matrix of the kidney stromal ...

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is an increasingly recognized cause of chronic heart failure amongst diabetic patients. Both increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and impaired ROS scavenging have been implicated in the pathogenesis of hyperglycemia-induced left ventricular dysfunction, cardiac fibrosis, apoptosis and hypertrophy. We hypothesized that 3',4'-dihydroxyflavonol (DiOHF), a small highly ...

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is becoming an important chronic liver disorder in Asia. Prevalence figures show regional variations but at least 10% of the general population in Asia have fatty liver. Fatty liver can develop with relatively small changes in weight (2-3 kg), often with increasing central adiposity. The metabolic ...