Enzyme Inhibition May Prevent Diabetes

Both types of IKK-beta-deficient mice and a group of normal control animals were fed a high-fat diet that normally causes metabolic syndrome and type II diabetes.


Results published in the February 2005 issue of Nature Medicine showed that the normal animals developed insulin-resistant symptoms and diabetes. Mice lacking IKK-b in their liver cells retained insulin sensitivity in the liver but became insulin-resistant in fat and muscle. The mice lacking IKK-b in myeloid cells retained insulin sensitivity in all tissues.

The authors suggested that inhibition of IKK-beta, especially in myeloid cells, might be used to treat insulin resistance. "The potential for a new diabetes treatment is great,” said contributing author, Dr. Jerrold Olefsky, head of the division of endocrinology and metabolism at the University of California, San Diego. "An inhibitor of IKK-beta could be used, or an inhibitor of any other molecule in the inflammation pathway.”




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