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AU RESEARCHER ON TRACK TO A NEW TREATMENT FOR DIABETES AND OBESITY
The research of Auburn University nutrition scientist Suresh Mathews may result in a therapeutic treatment for diabetes and obesity, two conditions that affect millions of people worldwide.
Mathews, an assistant professor in the Department of Nutrition and Food Science in AU’s College of Human Sciences, has discovered, along with his colleagues, that fetuin, a protein found in blood, may play a significant role in the regulation of glucose disposal, insulin sensitivity, weight gain and fat accumulation in the body.
Diabetes is a group of diseases marked by high levels of blood glucose resulting from defects in the body’s insulin production, insulin action or both, according to a publication by the American Diabetes Association.
Mathews’ research targets type 2 diabetes, which has a direct link to obesity. According to the ADA, type 2 diabetes accounts for up to 95 percent of all diagnosed cases, and onset usually occurs when cells do not use the body’s naturally produced insulin properly.
“Fetuin is secreted by the liver,” said Mathews. “Once it enters the circulation system, it acts as a regulator of insulin action. Think of it as a timing-off mechanism. It is not good for insulin to be on all the time.”
Mathews’ research with mice shows that the ability to turn off fetuin improves the body’s insulin sensitivity, increases glucose utilization and improves obesity resistance even when the mice are fed a high-fat diet.
“Normally, blood glucose rises following a meal, then the body secretes insulin which drives the glucose into the cells,” said Mathews. “With diabetes, this process is blunted and the blood has extra glucose that is not utilized properly.”
“Fetuin interferes with the normal process by blocking the effects of insulin,” said Mathews. “A goal of our research is to determine exact mechanisms involved in how turning fetuin off works to improve insulin action and obesity resistance.”
“We have made some important discoveries using our animal model,” said Mathews. “The next step is to examine this phenomenon in humans.”
“If we can find a mechanism to block this protein in humans, it could lead to development of a treatment for type II diabetes and obesity,” he said.
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