Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0011849 (diabetes)
 277,896 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The metabolism of glutathione and activities of its related enzymes were investigated in erythrocytes from patients with diabetes mellitus. A decrease in the levels of the reduced form of glutathione and an increase in the levels of glutathione disulfide were observed in erythrocytes from diabetics whose fasting plasma glucose was more than 140 mg/dl. The activity of glutathione reductase decreased in diabetics, while that of glutathione peroxidase did no change. ATP-depended outward transport of glutathione disulfide also decreased in diabetics. These data suggest that the increase in the levels of glutathione disulfide in erythrocyte from diabetics is brought about by the decreased transport activity of glutathione disulfide through the erythrocyte membrane together with a decrease in the activity of glutathione reductase. The activity of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase was significantly lower in diabetics than in normal controls. Glycated gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase determined using a boronate affinity column chromatography was higher in diabetics than in normal controls. The rate of glutathione synthesis using (H3)-glycine decreased in diabetics. The decrease is the levels of reduced form of glutathione is erythrocytes of diabetics is thought to be brought about by impaired glutathione synthesis. In order to study the mechanism by which glutathione synthesis is impaired, gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase was purified from human erythrocytes. The molecular weight of the purified enzyme was 60K. A single band was observed on SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. When the purified enzyme was incubated with glucose, the enzyme activity decreased dependent on the incubation time. These data suggest that the impaired glutathione synthesis in diabetics is brought by glycation of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase. As conclusion, glutathione metabolism is impaired in erythrocytes from diabetics which weaken the defence mechanism against oxidative stress in these patients.
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PMID:[Glutathione metabolism in erythrocytes from patients with diabetes mellitus]. 167 80

The metabolism of glutathione and activities of its related enzymes were studied in erythrocytes from patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). A decrease in the levels of the reduced form of glutathione and an increase in the levels of glutathione disulfide were found in erythrocytes of diabetics. To elucidate these changes in the levels of glutathione, synthetic and degradative processes were studied. The activity of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase was significantly lower in diabetics than in normal controls. The activity of glutathione synthetase of each group was the same. The rate of outward transport of glutathione disulfide in diabetics decreased to approximately 70% of that of normal controls. The activity of glutathione reductase decreased in diabetics. These data suggest that the decrease in the levels of reduced form of glutathione in erythrocytes of diabetics is brought about by impaired glutathione synthesis and that the increase in the levels of glutathione disulfide is brought about by the decreased transport activity of glutathione disulfide through the erythrocyte membrane together with a decrease in the activity of glutathione reductase. These data also suggest that the impairment of glutathione metabolism weakens the defense mechanism against oxidative stress in erythrocytes of diabetics.
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PMID:Impairment of glutathione metabolism in erythrocytes from patients with diabetes mellitus. 256 61

Recent studies have demonstrated the protective effects of supplementing free oxygen radical scavenging enzymes against hyperglycemia-induced embryonic malformations. In this study, the glutathione (GSH)-dependent protection system in hyperglycemia-induced embryopathy was investigated. Rat embryos at the early head-fold stage (day 9.5) cultured in 66.7 mmol/l glucose for 48 h showed significant growth retardation and an increase in the frequency of malformations. The concentration of GSH and activity of the rate-limiting GSH-synthesizing enzyme, gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (gamma-GCS), significantly decreased in embryos exposed to hyperglycemia compared with controls (7.9 +/- 0.6 vs. 12.5 +/- 0.9 nmol/mg protein, P < 0.01 and 13.3 +/- 1.9 vs. 22.6 +/- 1.1 microU/mg protein, P < 0.01, respectively). Decreased activity of gamma-GCS in embryos exposed to hyperglycemia was associated with decreased expression of gamma-GCS mRNA levels. However, the activities of superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase did not significantly change in these embryos. Extracellular and intracellular free oxygen radical formations estimated by Lucigenin-dependent chemoluminescence and flow cytometric analysis using 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein diacetate increased in isolated embryonic cells taken from embryos cultured under hyperglycemia. Supplementation of 2 mmol/l GSH ester into the hyperglycemic culture nearly restored GSH concentration in these embryos (11.9 +/- 0.5 vs. 12.5 +/- 0.9 nmol/mg protein) and reduced the formation of free oxygen radical species leading to almost complete normalization of growth retardation and embryonic dysmorphogenesis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Diabetes 1995 Aug
PMID:Significance of glutathione depletion and oxidative stress in early embryogenesis in glucose-induced rat embryo culture. 762 6

We previously reported that the activity of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (GCS), the rate-limiting enzyme in GSH synthesis, is under both hormonal and cell density regulation in cultured rat hepatocytes. Specifically, the addition of insulin or hydrocortisone to culture media or the lowering of the initial plating cell density increased cell GSH by increasing the activity of GCS. In the present study, we examined the molecular mechanism of these effects. To determine whether the increase in GCS activity is associated with an increase in GCS heavy subunit (GCS-HS) mRNA expression, the steady state mRNA levels of GCS-HS were examined with the use of Northern blots. After 24-hr treatment of high density (0.6 x 10(5) cells/cm2) cultured rat hepatocytes with insulin (1 micrograms/ml) or hydrocortisone (50 nM), the steady state GCS-HS mRNA level increased by approximately 1-2 fold. When the plating density was decreased to 0.1 x 10(5) cells/cm2, the steady state GCS-HS mRNA level also increased by 1-2 fold 24 hr later. An increase in the steady state GCS-HS mRNA level was found within 4 hr of either hormonal treatment or cell density manipulation. The increase in steady state GCS-HS mRNA level resulted from increased gene transcription, as the transcriptional rates of GCS-HS after hormonal or cell density manipulation were increased by 2-3-fold, whereas the rates of GCS-HS mRNA degradation remained unchanged. Western blotting confirmed the increase in GCS-HS protein level after hormone treatment or lowering of plating cell density. When examined in vivo, the steady state GCS-HS mRNA level decreased by 50% in a rat in which diabetes had been induced with streptozotocin for 1 week; this was prevented with insulin replacement. In summary, GCS-HS gene expression is under both hormonal and cell density regulation.
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PMID:Hormonal and cell density regulation of hepatic gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase gene expression. 765 54

Glutathione functions to scavenge oxidants or xenobiotics by covalently binding them and transporting the resulting metabolites through an adenosine 5'-triphosphate-dependent transport system. It has been reported that the intracellular concentration of glutathione decreases in diabetes mellitus. In order to elucidate the physiological significance and the regulation of anti-oxidants in diabetic patients, changes in the activity of the glutathione-synthesizing enzyme, gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase, and transport of thiol [S-(2,4-dinitrophenyl)glutathione] were studied in erythrocytes from patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes and K562 cells cultured with 27 mmol/l glucose for 7 days. The activity of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase, the concentration of glutathione, and the thiol transport were 77%, 77% and 69%, respectively in erythrocytes from diabetic patients compared to normal control subjects. Treatment of patients with an antidiabetic agent for 6 months resulted in the restoration of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase activity, the concentration of glutathione, and the thiol transport. A similar impairment of glutathione metabolism was observed in K562 cells with high glucose levels. The cytotoxicity by a xenobiotic (1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene) was higher in K562 cells with high glucose than in control subjects (50% of inhibitory concentration 300 +/- 24 mumol/l vs 840 +/- 29 mumol/l, p < 0.01). Expression of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase protein was augmented in K562 cells with high glucose, while enzymatic activity and expression of mRNA were lower than those in the control subjects. These results suggest that inactivation of glutathione synthesis and thiol transport in diabetic patients increases the sensitivity of the cells to oxidative stresses, and these changes may lead to the development of some complications in diabetes mellitus.
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PMID:Weakened cellular scavenging activity against oxidative stress in diabetes mellitus: regulation of glutathione synthesis and efflux. 771 15

To elucidate the pathological metabolism of glutathione synthesis in diabetic endothelial cells, we studied the expression of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (gamma-GCS) using a mouse vascular endothelial cell line. Exposing normoglycemic endothelial cells to tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) or interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) increased the activity and the mRNA expression of gamma-GCS. The addition of inhibitors for nuclear factor kappaB (NF-kappaB) to the cells caused a loss of the gamma-GCS mRNA expression in response to TNF-alpha. A shift of the concentration of glucose in the medium from 5.5 to 28 mM glucose and a following incubation for 7 days decreased the expression of gamma-GCS mRNA. These cells showed no apparent responses of gamma-GCS mRNA or the activity of NF-kappaB to TNF-alpha or IL-beta. Increase in the GSH concentration of the cells treated with 28 mM glucose restored the expression of gamma-GCS mRNA and its response to TNF-alpha or IL-beta, suggesting that redox regulation is involved in the expression of gamma-GCS. In summary, the expression of gamma-GCS is regulated by TNF-alpha or IL-1beta in endothelial cells mediated by NF-kappaB stimulation, and impairment of the regulation of gamma-GCS in hyperglycemic cells may be a cause of medical complications that develop in diabetes mellitus.
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PMID:Long exposure to high glucose concentration impairs the responsive expression of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase by interleukin-1beta and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in mouse endothelial cells. 866 65

Changes in tissue glutathione antioxidant system in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats for a period of 15 weeks were examined. Total glutathione level was significantly increased in kidney tissue, but were slightly decreased and increased in liver and heart tissues, respectively. The small changes in total glutathione level in the liver and heart, though not statistically significant, were associated with reciprocal alterations in the activity of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (GCS). While the GCS activity was not changed in kidney tissue, the activity of gamma-glutathione peroxidase was significantly increased in kidney tissue. Insulin treatment could completely or partly normalize almost all of these changes induced by diabetes. However, the decrease in hepatic glutathione S-transferases activity in diabetic rats was not reversed by the insulin treatment. The ensemble of results suggests that the diabetes-induced alterations in tissue glutathione antioxidant system may possibly reflect an inter-organ antioxidant response to a generalized increase in tissue oxidative stress associated with diabetes.
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PMID:Alterations in tissue glutathione antioxidant system in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. 890 39

Oxidative stress has been proposed as a possible pathogenic factor for diabetic complications. It is relevant in determining cell replicative capacity and life span, and in vitro antioxidant treatment is able to reverse the impaired proliferative activity of different cell types. It was recently demonstrated that cultured skin fibroblasts from insulin-dependent diabetic patients with nephropathy age prematurely and have a shorter life cell cycle. To test whether the growth phenotype of cells from patients with diabetic nephropathy was related to a lack of protection from oxidative stress, the effect of reduced glutathione (GSH) on cultured skin fibroblasts from 13 insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) patients with nephropathy (DN), 10 IDDM patients without kidney disease (D), and 10 nondiabetic control subjects (C), in normal (5 mM) glucose (NG) and high (22 mM) glucose (HG) medium was studied. After 6 to 8 passages, fibroblasts from DN showed impaired growth both in NG (mean +/- SD fold increase over baseline counts in DN 1.17 +/- 0.6 versus D 1.7 +/- 0.5 versus C 1.95 +/- 0.8; P = 0.04 by ANOVA) and in HG (mean +/- SD fold increase over baseline counts DN 1.16 +/- 0.41 versus D 1.89 +/- 0.66 versus C 2.24 +/- 0.9; P = 0.003 by ANOVA). GSH prevented the growth abnormalities of cells from DN restoring it to values similar to that of the other two groups (mean +/- SD fold increase over baseline counts NG +/- GSH: DN 1.68 +/- 0.9 versus D 1.78 +/- 0.49 versus C 1.99 +/- 0.7, P = 0.6; and in HG + GSH: DN 1.66 +/- 0.69 versus D 1.87 +/- 0.75 versus C 2.2 +/- 0.9, P = 0.3). Growth rates were not affected by the addition of GSH in fibroblasts from D and C. The treatment of fibroblasts from D and C with the inhibitor of the gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase activity, L-buthionine-S,R-sulfoximine, resulted in growth impairment, and the addition to the culture medium of another antioxidant, superoxide dismutase, corrected the growth abnormalities in fibroblasts from DN. The impaired growth of cultured fibroblasts from IDDM patients with nephropathy is prevented by GSH and superoxide dismutase and is independent of prevailing glucose concentrations. This suggests that oxidative stress is an important mechanism of intrinsic cell dysfunction in these patients.
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PMID:Glutathione reverses the growth abnormalities of skin fibroblasts from insulin-dependent diabetic patients with nephropathy. 962 Dec 89

Glutathione (GSH) is an important intracellular peptide with multiple functions ranging from antioxidant defense to modulation of cell proliferation. GSH is synthesized in the cytosol of all mammalian cells in a tightly regulated manner. The major determinants of GSH synthesis are the availability of cysteine, the sulfur amino acid precursor, and the activity of the rate-limiting enzyme, gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (GCS). In the liver, major factors that determine the availability of cysteine are diet, membrane transport activities of the three sulfur amino acids cysteine, cystine and methionine, and the conversion of methionine to cysteine via the trans-sulfuration pathway. Many conditions alter GSH level via changes in GCS activity and GCS gene expression. These include oxidative stress, activators of Phase II detoxifying enzymes, antioxidants, drug-resistant tumor cell lines, hormones, cell proliferation, and diabetes mellitus. Since the molecular cloning of GCS, much has been learned about the regulation of this enzyme. Both transcriptional and post-transcriptional mechanisms modulate the activity of this critical cellular enzyme.--Lu, S. C. Regulation of hepatic glutathione synthesis: current concepts and controversies.
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PMID:Regulation of hepatic glutathione synthesis: current concepts and controversies. 1038 8

Involvement of oxidative stress is implicated in the progression of complication of diabetes mellitus. With respect to heart diseases, we have studied role of oxidative stress/antioxidants using rats treated with streptozotocin to induce diabetes (DM). Hemodynamic and echocardiographic measurements showed thickening of the wall and an increase in the internal dimension of the left ventricle (LV) in DM rats at 8th week. Decrease in diastolic posterior wall velocity and rate of LV pressure change, and increase in LV end diastolic pressures also proved cardiac dysfunction. These changes were further developed in DM rats after 12 weeks. Utilizing rat hearts at 8th and 12th weeks, the following estimations were performed. There was a decrease in the activity of Mn-superoxide dismutase (SOD), suggesting abnormal mitochondrial metabolism of reactive oxygen species. The level of glutathione (GSH) decreased concomitant with a decrease in the expression of gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (gamma-GCS). The expression of transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1), known as a growth factor and a suppressor of GSH synthesis, elevated in DM rat hearts. Immunohistochemical estimation showed an increase in type IV collagen in DM hearts. Collectively, it was suggested a linkage between mitochondrial damage to generate reactive oxygen species and inactivation of Mn-SOD and elevation of the expression of TGF-beta1 to lead suppression of GSH synthesis and induction of fibrous change for the consequent cardiac dysfunction in DM.
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PMID:Alteration of antioxidants during the progression of heart disease in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. 1126


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