TNF-alpha plays an important role in the pathogenesis of obesity and insulin resistance in which the effect of TNF-alpha signaling via TNF receptor type 1 (TNFR1) largely remains controversial. To delineate the role of TNFR1-mediated TNF-alpha signaling in the pathogenesis of this disorder, a TNFR1 blocking peptide-Fc fusion protein (TNFR1BP-Fc) ...

Growth hormone deficiency or resistance resulting from spontaneous or experimentally produced mutations in laboratory mice delay aging and increase lifespan. Alterations in insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and insulin signaling emerged as likely mechanisms linking growth hormone and aging, and increased longevity was reported in mice with selective deletion of IGF-1 ...

Aqueous extracts or juice from unripened fruit of Momordica charantia (bitter melon) has traditionally been used in the treatment of diabetes and its complications. Insulin resistance is characterized by significant down-regulation of hepatic insulin signalling as documented by attenuated phosphorylation of insulin receptor (IR), IR substrates 1 and 2, phosphoinositide-3 ...

Chronic alcohol intake leads to alcoholic cardiomyopathy characterized by cardiac hypertrophy and contractile dysfunction possibly related to the toxicity of the ethanol metabolite acetaldehyde. This study examined the impact of augmented acetaldehyde exposure on myocardial function, geometry, and insulin signaling via cardiac-specific overexpression of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH). ADH transgenic and ...

The uptake, biosynthesis and metabolism of cholesterol and other lipids are exquisitely regulated by feedback and feed-forward pathways in organisms ranging from Caenorhabditis elegans to humans. As endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane-embedded transcription factors that are activated in the Golgi apparatus, sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs) are central to the intracellular ...

Numerous experimental and clinical data show that the physiological actions of insulin and sexual steroids interact in target tissues for these hormones. In the other hand, sexual steroids has effects on peripheral tissues, and since the skeletal muscle is the main responsible for peripheral glucose uptake, it would be possible ...

This study examined whether telmisartan, a unique angiotensin II type 1 receptor blocker (ARB) with peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma)-modulating activity, improved insulin resistance in advanced glycation end-product (AGE)-exposed human hepatoma (Hep3B) cells. AGE increased phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) at serine-307 residues in Hep3B cells. It also decreased tyrosine ...

OBJECTIVE: Malonyl coenzyme A (CoA) decarboxylase (MCD) is a key enzyme responsible for malonyl-CoA turnover and functions in the control of the balance between lipid and glucose metabolism. We utilized RNA interference (siRNA)-based gene silencing to determine the direct role of MCD on metabolic responses in primary human skeletal muscle. ...

High-glucose/low-dose insulin-mediated insulin resistance of glucose transport was studied in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. In this model, proximal insulin signaling, including insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1-bound phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase) activation, is preserved, but insulin-stimulated protein kinase B (Akt) activation is markedly impaired. To assess a difference in acute insulin-stimulated production of phosphatidylinositol ...

Angiogenesis, the development of new blood vessels from the existing vasculature, is essential in normal developmental processes. Uncontrolled angiogenesis is a major contributor to a number of disease states such as inflammatory disorders, obesity, asthma, diabetes, cirrhosis, multiple sclerosis, endometriosis, AIDS, bacterial infections and autoimmune disease. It is also considered ...

Statin-treatment of fructose-fed/insulin resistant hamsters was recently shown to ameliorate metabolic dyslipidemia and hepatic VLDL overproduction. Here, we provide evidence that rosuvastatin treatment of insulin resistant hamsters can induce improvements in hepatic and whole body insulin sensitivity. Treatment with 10 mg/kg/day rosuvastatin for 10 days significantly reduced fasting insulin (-59%) ...

The receptor tyrosine kinase Axl and its ligand Gas6 are involved in the development of renal diabetic disease. In vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) Axl is activated by reactive oxygen species and stimulates migration and cell survival, suggesting a role for Axl in the vascular complications of diabetes. We investigated ...

Glucose flux through the hexosamine biosynthetic pathway leads to the post-translational modification of cytoplasmic and nuclear proteins by O-linked beta-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc). This tandem system serves as a nutrient sensor to couple systemic metabolic status to cellular regulation of signal transduction, transcription, and protein degradation. Here we show that O-GlcNAc transferase ...

As obesity, diabetes, and associated comorbidities are on a constant rise, large efforts have been put into better understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which nutrients and metabolic signals influence central and peripheral energy regulation. For decades, peripheral organs as a source and a target of such cues have ...

OBJECTIVE: Berberine (BBR) activates AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and improves insulin sensitivity in rodent models of insulin resistance. We investigated the mechanism of activation of AMPK by BBR and explored whether derivatization of BBR could improve its in vivo efficacy. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: AMPK phosphorylation was examined in L6 ...

Several serine/threonine kinases reportedly phosphorylate serine residues of IRS-1 and thereby induce insulin resistance. In this study, to investigate the effect of mTOR/raptor on insulin signaling and metabolism in K/KAy mice with genetic obesity-associated insulin resistance, a dominant negative raptor, COOH-terminally deleted raptor (raptor-DeltaC(T)), was overexpressed in the liver via ...

The insulin signaling pathway is of pivotal importance in metabolic diseases, such as diabetes, and in cellular processes, such as aging. Insulin activates a tyrosine phosphorylation cascade that branches to create a complex network affecting multiple biological processes. To understand the full spectrum of the tyrosine phosphorylation cascade, we have ...

Ataxin-2 is a cytoplasmic protein, product of the SCA2 gene. Expansion of the normal polyglutamine tract in the protein leads to the neurodegenerative disorder Spino-Cerebellar Ataxia type 2 (SCA2). Although ataxin-2 has been related to polyribosomes, endocytosis and actin-cytoskeleton organization, its biological function remains unknown. In the present study, an ...

FoxO transcription factors contribute to cardiac muscle remodeling and insulin signaling, but how they link insulin resistance and maladaptive heart hypertrophy remains unknown. A new study by Ni et al. (2007) shows that sustained activation of FoxO1 or FoxO3 in cardiomyocytes selectively enhances the activity of Akt/PKB and reduces insulin ...

Impairment of systemic insulin action causes insufficient glucose uptake to cells and compensatory hyper-secretion of insulin from pancreatic β-cells. This insulin-resistant state promotes development of type 2 diabetes, obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and atherosclerosis. Numerous attempts have been made to clarigy this pathogenesis and molocular mechanisms of insulin resistance. Tumor necrosis ...

A wide range of genetically engineered murine models of type 2 diabetes have been created to try to understand the site of the primary defect in insulin action, and the relationship between insulin resistance and impaired beta-cell function in diabetes. Genetic disruption of various aspects known to be important in ...

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: The serine/threonine kinase Akt/protein kinase B (PKB) is required for the metabolic actions of insulin. Controversial data have been reported regarding Akt defective activation in the muscle of type 2 diabetic patients. Because three Akt isoforms exist, each having a distinct physiological role, we investigated the contribution of isoform-specific ...

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is an energy-sensing enzyme that is activated by an increased AMP/ATP ratio. AMPK is now well recognized to induce glucose uptake in skeletal muscle and heart. 5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide-1-beta-d-ribofuranoside (AICAR) is phosphorylated to form the AMP analog ZMP, which activates AMPK. Its effects on glucose transport appear to ...

OBJECTIVE: Oxidative stress is associated with insulin resistance and is thought to contribute to progression toward type 2 diabetes. Oxidation induces cellular damages through increased amounts of reactive aldehydes from lipid peroxidation. The aim of our study was to investigate 1) the effect of the major lipid peroxidation end product, ...

OBJECTIVE: To quantitate insulin sensitivity in lean and obese nondiabetic baboons and examine the underlying cellular/molecular mechanisms responsible for impaired insulin action to characterize a baboon model of insulin resistance. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Twenty baboons received a hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp with skeletal muscle and visceral adipose tissue biopsies at baseline ...

Insulin resistance, hyperglycemia, and type 2 diabetes are among the sequelae of metabolic syndromes that occur in 60-80% of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients treated with HIV-protease inhibitors (PIs). Studies to elucidate the molecular mechanism(s) contributing to these changes, however, have mainly focused on acute, in vitro actions of PIs. ...

Type 2 diabetes develops from insulin resistance and has become a worldwide epidemic. The c-Jun N-terminal kinases have been considered as signaling molecules linking inflammation and insulin resistance. Genetic disruption of c-Jun N-terminal kinase-1 gene prevents the development of insulin resistance in obese and diabetic mice. Inhibition of c-Jun N-terminal ...

The liver plays a key role in glucose homeostasis, lipid and energy metabolism. Its function is primarily controlled by the anabolic hormone insulin and its counterparts glucagon, catecholamines and glucocorticoids. Dysregulation of this homeostatic system is a major cause for development of the metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes mellitus. ...

Recent studies indicate that intracellular insulin signalling involves the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by NADPH oxidases (NOX). ROS inhibit intracellular protein tyrosin phosphatases whereby phosphoprotein signalling is enhanced and prolonged. We used the isolated perfused rat liver and detected ROS formation by measuring the surface fluorescence at wavelengths ...

Insulin-like signaling is critical for nutrient homeostasis, growth and survival. However, work with lower metazoans-Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila-shows that reduced insulin-like signaling extends life span. In addition, reduced insulin signaling in higher animals-rodents and humans-causes glucose intolerance and hyperinsulinemia that progresses to diabetes and shortens the life span of affected ...

AIM: The aim of the present study was to observe the effects of resistin on insulin sensitivity and glucose output in rat-derived hepatocytes. METHODS: The rat hepatoma cell line H4IIE was cultured and stimulated with resistin; supernant glucose and glycogen content were detected. The insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1 and IRS-2, ...

The goal of this work was to develop and implement a new filtering strategy to denoise acoustic signals in the ear canal resulting from voluntary movement of the tongue (as a method of generating control input), as well as from other active actions, (speech, eating, drinking, smoking), and passive actions ...

Recent studies have shown that statins might have relevant effects on insulin resistance in animal models and in humans. However, the molecular mechanisms that account for this improvement in insulin sensitivity are not well established. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of a statin on ...

SIRT1, a NAD(+)-dependent protein deacetylase that regulates transcription factors involved in key cellular processes, has been implicated as a mediator of the beneficial effects of calorie restriction. In a recent issue of Nature, Milne et al. (2007) describe novel potent activators of SIRT1, whose administration to insulin-resistant animals improves glucose ...

Both insulin resistance and reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been reported to play essential pathophysiological roles in cardiovascular diseases. However, the mechanistic link between ROS and insulin resistance in the vasculature remains unclear. Recently we have shown that insulin causes KATP channel activation mediated by PI3K in cultured vascular smooth ...

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Children born small for gestational age (SGA) are at increased risk for short stature and type 2 diabetes mellitus as a result of growth hormone (GH) resistance and insulin resistance. The mechanisms of multiple hormone resistance remain unclear. This study was designed to investigate the relationship between GH resistance ...

Protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) is an enzyme that plays a critical role in down-regulating insulin signaling through dephosphorylation of the insulin receptor. Inhibitors of PTP1B showed increased insulin sensitivity and normalize plasma glucose level and thus are useful therapeutic agents for the treatment of diabetes. A series of functionalized ...

The systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) is triggered by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from Gram-negative bacteria. Insulin was shown to have a protective role in SIRS related to sepsis. Lungs are particularly affected in this condition and provide a second wave of mediators/cytokines which amplifies SIRS. The aim of the present study ...

First discovered as inhibitors of cytokine signalling, the suppressor of cytokine signalling (SOCS) proteins have appeared, over recent years, as potent repressors of other signalling pathways including the one induced by insulin. SOCS-1 and SOCS-3 have been extensively studied both in vitro and in vivo in the context of insulin ...

Hepatic homeostasis is essential for survival in critically ill and burned patients. Insulin administration improves survival and decreases infections in these patients. To determine the molecular mechanisms, the aim of the present study was to establish a stress model using primary human hepatocytes (PHHs) and to study the effects of ...

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are ligand-activated nuclear receptors controlling many important physiological processes, including lipid and glucose metabolism, energy homeostasis, inflammation, as well as cell proliferation and differentiation. In the past decade, intensive study of PPARs has shed novel insight into prevention and treatment of dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, and type ...

Type 2 diabetes is caused by defects in both insulin signaling and insulin secretion. Though the role of the ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes remains largely unexplored, the few examples present in the literature are interesting and suggest targets for drug development. Studies indicate ...

Low-intensity electrical current (or mild electrical stimulation; MES) influences signal transduction and activates phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway. Because insulin resistance is characterized by a marked reduction in insulin-stimulated PI3K-mediated activation of Akt, we asked whether MES could increase Akt phosphorylation and ameliorate insulin resistance. In addition, it was also previously ...

The phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) pathway crucially controls metabolism and cell growth. Although different PI3K catalytic subunits are known to play distinct roles, the specific in vivo function of p110beta (the product of the PIK3CB gene) is not clear. Here, we show that mouse mutants expressing a catalytically inactive PIK3CB(K805R) mutant ...

Insulin resistance is a major feature of pathological states such as obesity and diabetes. A consequence of insulin resistance is enhanced lipolysis, which causes excessive release of free fatty acids and deregulates fatty acid homeostasis. The transcription factor FOXO1 has a central role in the regulation of glucose levels by ...

Protein kinase C (PKC) isoforms are involved in the transduction of a number of signals important for the regulation of cell growth, differentiation, apoptosis, and other cellular functions. PKC proteins reside in the cytoplasm in an inactive state translocate to various membranes to become fully activated in the presence of ...

Human embryonic stem cells (hESC) can proliferate indefinitely while retaining the capacity to form derivatives of all three germ layers. We have reported previously that hESC differentiate into cardiomyocytes when cocultured with a visceral endoderm-like cell line (END-2). Insulin/insulin-like growth factors and their intracellular downstream target protein kinase Akt are ...

In vertebrates and invertebrates, relationships between diet and health are controlled by a conserved signalling pathway responsive to insulin-like ligands. In invertebrate models for example, forkhead transcription factor family O (FOXO) transcription factors in this pathway regulate the rate of aging in response to dietary cues, and in vertebrates, obesity ...

The effects of insulin on the vasculature are significant because insulin resistance is associated with hypertension. To increase the understanding of the effects of insulin on the vasculature, we analyzed changes in potassium ion transport in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Using the potential-sensitive fluorescence dye bis-(1,3-dibutylbarbituric acid)trimethine oxonol ...

Proinflammatory cytokines are well-known to inhibit insulin signaling to result in insulin resistance. IL-1alpha is also one of the proinflammatory cytokines, but the mechanism of how IL-1alpha induces insulin resistance remains unclear. We have now examined the effects of IL-1alpha on insulin signaling in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Prolonged IL-1alpha treatment for ...