Scientists at the University of Texas Health Science Center have discovered that protein deposits in the pancreas become worse as blood glucose levels rise, even slightly, causing damage to the cells that produce insulin. These same proteins also increases the number of cells that produce glucagon, a hormone that raises blood glucose levels. It's possible that this process may play a part in the development of type 2 diabetes.
The cells that produce insulin are called beta cells; the cells that produce glucagon are called alpha cells.
Franco Folli, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of medicine at the UT Health Science Center explains in a press release, beta cells die when protein deposits occur, and alpha cells increase. Dr. Folli states, “It’s really an imbalance. Both activities are not normal and produce an undesirable effect, ultimately type 2 diabetes.”
The researchers examined pancreatic tissue from baboons that had died of natural causes, including type 2 diabetes.
Read the press release here...
Photo courtesy of Dr. Fred Hossler/Getty Images
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