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

The Melanocortin-4 Receptor is a G-protein coupled receptor that has been physiologically linked to participate in the regulation of energy homeostasis. The Melanocortin-4 Receptor is stimulated by endogenous melanocortin agonists derived from the pro-opiomelanocortin gene transcript and antagonized by the endogenous antagonist agouti-related protein. Central administration of melanocortin agonists has been demonstrated to decrease food intake and conversely, treatment with antagonists resulted in increased food intake. Deletion of the Melanocortin-4 Receptor gene from the mouse genome results in an obese and hyperphagic phenotype. Polymorphisms of the human Melanocortin-4-Receptor have been found in severely obese individuals, suggesting that Melanocortin-4 Receptor malfunction might be involved in human obesity and obesity-associated diabetes. Herein, we have performed experiments to understand the molecular mechanisms associated with the L250Q human Melanocortin-4-Receptor polymorphism discovered in an extremely obese woman. This L250Q human Melanocortin-4-Receptor has been pharmacologically characterized to result in a constitutively active receptor. The fact that a constitutively active human Melanocortin-4-Receptor mutation was found in an obese person is a physiologic contradiction, as chronic activation of the human Melanocortin-4-Receptor and subsequently high cyclic adenosine monophosphate levels should theoretically result in a normal or lean phenotype. In this study, we demonstrated that agouti-related protein acts as an inverse agonist at this constitutively active receptor, and we propose a mechanism by which agouti-related protein might contribute to the obese phenotype in the L250Q patient. In addition, using receptor mutagenesis, pharmacology, and computer modeling approaches, we investigated the molecular mechanism by which modification of the L250 residue results in constitutive activation of the human Melanocortin-4-Receptor.
 ...
PMID:Molecular mechanism of the constitutive activation of the L250Q human melanocortin-4 receptor polymorphism. 1661 Dec 15

Adipose tissue plays a crucial role in energy homeostasis not only in storing triglyceride, but also responding to nutrient, neural, and hormonal signals, and producing factors which control feeding, thermogenesis, immune and neuroendocrine function, and glucose and lipid metabolism. Adipose tissue secretes leptin, steroid hormones, adiponectin, inflammatory cytokines, resistin, complement factors, and vasoactive peptides. The endocrine function of adipose tissue is typified by leptin. An increase in leptin signals satiety to neuronal targets in the hypothalamus. Leptin activates Janus-activating kinase2 (Jak2) and STAT 3, resulting in stimulation of anorexigenic peptides, e.g., alpha-MSH and CART, and inhibition of orexigenic peptides, e.g., NPY and AGRP. The reduction in leptin levels during fasting stimulates appetite, decreases thermogenesis, thyroid and reproductive hormones, and increases glucocorticoids. Leptin also stimulates fatty acid oxidation, insulin release, and peripheral insulin action. These effects involve regulation of PI-3 kinase, PTP-1B, suppressor of cytokine signaling-3 (SOCS-3), and AMP-activated protein kinase in the brain and peripheral organs. There is emerging evidence that leptin, adiponectin, and resistin act through overlapping pathways. Understanding the signal transduction of adipocyte hormones will provide novel insights on the pathogenesis and treatment of obesity, diabetes, and various metabolic disorders.
 ...
PMID:Adipokines that link obesity and diabetes to the hypothalamus. 1687 74

Ghrelin, the only known orexigenic gut hormone, is secreted mainly from the stomach, increases with fasting and before meal initiation in humans and rats, and increases food intake after central or peripheral administration. To investigate sex differences in the action of ghrelin, we assessed the effects of exogenous ghrelin in intact male and female rats, the effects of exogenous ghrelin in ovariectomized (OVX) and estradiol (E2)-treated female rats, as well as the effects of OVX on plasma ghrelin and hypothalamic orexigneic neuropeptide expression in rats and on food intake and weight gain in transgenic mice lacking the ghrelin receptor (Ghsr(-/-) mice). Male and OVX female rats were significantly more sensitive than intact female rats to the orexigenic effects of both centrally (intra-third ventricular, i3vt, 0.01, 0.1, and 1.0 nmol) and systemically (ip, 3, 6, and 9 nmol) administered ghrelin. This difference is likely to be estradiol dependent because E2 attenuated the orexigenic action of ghrelin in OVX female and male rats. Furthermore, OVX increased food intake and body weight in wild-type mice, but not in Ghsr(-/-) mice, suggesting that OVX increases food intake by releasing ghrelin from a tonic inhibitory effect of estradiol. In addition, following OVX, there was an increase in plasma ghrelin that was temporally associated with increased food intake, body weight, and hypothalamic neuropeptide Y and Agouti-related protein mRNA expression. Collectively, these data suggest that estradiol inhibits the orexigenic action of ghrelin in females, that weight gain associated with OVX is ghrelin mediated, and that this endocrine interaction may account for an important sex differences in food intake and the regulation of body weight.
Diabetes 2007 Apr
PMID:Estradiol-dependent decrease in the orexigenic potency of ghrelin in female rats. 1725 Dec 74

Elevated anxiety symptoms have been reported to be present in many patients with diabetes mellitus. The underlying mechanisms by which diabetes mellitus influences behavior remain to be determined. We assessed feeding and anxiety behaviors in spontaneously diabetic Ins2Akita mice. We measured blood glucose, body weight, and food and water intakes in C57BL/6 heterozygote Ins2Akita mice. The behavioral properties of Ins2Akita mice were assessed in an open-field test and an elevated plus-maze. The gene expression of hypothalamic neuropeptides was examined in non-food-deprived Ins2Akita mice. Body weights of the Ins2Akita mice were less than those of the age-matched C57BL/6 mice, as controls. Food and water intakes were increased in the Ins2Akita mice. In the open-field test, the Ins2Akita mice had decreased locomotor activity and increased immobilization time. The Ins2Akita mice exhibited anxiety behavior in the elevated plus-maze. RT-PCR analysis showed decreased proopiomelanocortin (POMC) mRNA expression and increased agouti-related protein (AGRP) mRNA expression in Ins2Akita mice. There were no significant differences in hypothalamic ghrelin mRNA expression. These observations indicate that Ins2Akita mice, which are characterized by hypoinsulinemia and hyperglycemia, exhibited hyperphagia and anxiety behavior; the mechanism of action involved the activation of hypothalamic AGRP and the inactivation of hypothalamic POMC. In addition, Ins2Akita mice are a useful model for understanding the mechanisms involved in the psychological complications of diabetes mellitus. Further, melanocortin systems may be therapeutic targets not only for diabetes but also for its associated complications.
 ...
PMID:Ins2Akita mice exhibit hyperphagia and anxiety behavior via the melanocortin system. 1733 40

Dmbx1 is a paired-class homeodomain transcription factor. We show here that mice deficient in Dmbx1 exhibit severe leanness associated with hypophagia and hyperactivity and that isolation of a Dmbx1(-/-) mouse from its cohabitants induces self-starvation, sometimes leading to death, features similar to those of anorexia nervosa in humans. Interestingly, overexpression of agouti in Dmbx1(-/-) mice failed to induce aspects of the A(y)/a phenotype, including hyperphagia, obesity, and diabetes mellitus. In Dmbx1(-/-) mice, administration of agouti-related protein increased cumulative food intake for the initial 6 h but significantly decreased it over 24- and 48-h periods. In addition, Dmbx1 was shown to be expressed at embryonic day 15.5 in the lateral parabrachial nucleus, the rostral nucleus of the tractus solitarius, the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus, and the reticular nucleus in the brainstem, all of which receive melanocortin signaling, indicating involvement of Dmbx1 in the development of the neural network for the signaling. Thus, Dmbx1 is essential for various actions of agouti-related protein and plays a role in normal regulation of energy homeostasis and behavior.
 ...
PMID:Dmbx1 is essential in agouti-related protein action. 1787 59

The link between obesity and diabetes is not fully understood but there is evidence to suggest that hypothalamic signalling pathways may be involved. The hypothalamic neuropeptides, pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), neuropeptide Y (NPY) and agouti-related protein (AGRP) are central to the regulation of food intake and have been implicated in glucose homeostasis. Therefore, the expression of these genes was quantified in hypothalami from diabetic Zucker fatty (ZDF) rats and nondiabetic Zucker fatty (ZF) rats at 6, 8, 10 and 14 weeks of age. Although both strains are obese, only ZDF rats develop pancreatic degeneration and diabetes over this time period. In both ZF and ZDF rats, POMC gene expression was decreased in obese versus lean rats at all ages. By contrast, although there was the expected increase in both NPY and AGRP expression in obese 14-week-old ZF rats, the expression of NPY and AGRP was decreased in 6-week-old obese ZDF rats with hyperinsulinaemia and in 14-week-old rats with the additional hyperglycaemia. Therefore, candidate genes involved in glucose, and insulin signalling pathways were examined in obese ZDF rats over this age range. We found that expression of the ATP-sensitive potassium (K(ATP)) channel component, Kir6.2, was decreased in obese ZDF rats and was lower compared to ZF rats in each age group tested. Furthermore, immunofluorescence analysis showed that Kir6.2 protein expression was reduced in the dorsomedial and ventromedial hypothalamic nuclei of 6-week-old prediabetic ZDF rats compared to ZF rats. The Kir6.2 immunofluorescence colocalised with NPY throughout the hypothalamus. The differences in Kir6.2 expression in ZF and ZDF rats mimic those of NPY and AGRP, which could infer that the changes occur in the same neurones. Overall, these data suggest that chronic changes in hypothalamic Kir6.2 expression may be associated with the development of hyperinsulinaemia and hyperglycaemia in ZDF rats.
 ...
PMID:Reduced expression of the KATP channel subunit, Kir6.2, is associated with decreased expression of neuropeptide Y and agouti-related protein in the hypothalami of Zucker diabetic fatty rats. 1800 23

Exercise is a mechanism for maintenance of body weight in humans. Morbidly obese human patients have been shown to possess single nucleotide polymorphisms in the melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R). MC4R knockout mice have been well characterized as a genetic model that possesses phenotypic metabolic disorders, including obesity, hyperphagia, hyperinsulinemia, and hyperleptinemia, similar to those observed in humans possessing dysfunctional hMC4Rs. Using this model, we examined the effect of voluntary exercise of MC4R knockout mice that were allowed access to a running wheel for a duration of 8 wk. Physiological parameters that were measured included body weight, body composition of fat and lean mass, food consumption, body length, and blood levels of cholesterol and nonfasted glucose, insulin, and leptin. At the termination of the experiment, hypothalamic mRNA expression levels of neuropeptide Y (NPY), agouti-related protein (AGRP), proopiomelanocortin (POMC), cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART), orexin, brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF), phosphatase with tensin homology (Pten), melanocortin-3 receptor (MC3R), and NPY-Y1R were determined. In addition, islet cell distribution and function in the pancreas were examined. In the exercising MC4R knockout mice, the pancreatic islet cell morphology and other physiological parameters resembled those observed in the wild-type littermate controls. Gene expression profiles identified exercise as having a significant effect on hypothalamic POMC, orexin, and MC3R levels. Genotype had a significant effect on AGRP, POMC, CART, and NPY-Y1R, with an exercise and genotype interaction effect on NPY gene expression. These data support the hypothesis that voluntary exercise can prevent the genetic predisposition of melanocortin-4 receptor-associated obesity and diabetes.
 ...
PMID:Voluntary exercise prevents the obese and diabetic metabolic syndrome of the melanocortin-4 receptor knockout mouse. 1897 Dec 58

Discreet chorioretinal spots are a characteristic of the Pattern Dystrophies (PD) that include a small group of disorders with pigmentary changes in the posterior fundus, including the macular region. These disorders are transmitted as either Autosomal Recessive or Dominant trait and can be observed in association with maternal diabetes mellitus and deafness. This report was performed with three aims: 1. to present a clinical case of PD in a young girl and her family; 2. to elucidate the complex panel of diagnostic Hi-Tech techniques; 3. to describe the State of the Art in this field of retinal alterations. The complex diagnostic procedure, when examined at the light of the consolidated bibliography, confirms the importance of the new Hi-Tech instrumentation as an indispensable tool for an early diagnosis of PD.
 ...
PMID:[Inherited macular pattern dystrophies: a case report, diagnostic methodology, state of the art]. 1916 3

Obesity is a serious, lifelong, worldwide health problem. Once obese, few people are able to lose their excess weight. Bariatric surgery is an intervention that has produced substantial and sustained weight loss in adults. It is offered increasingly as an option for extremely obese adolescents. Selection criteria have been proposed by several expert consensus panels. Outcomes and metabolic consequences of bariatric surgery on glucose-insulin interactions, diabetes, sleep architecture, the gastrointestinal tract, asthma, cardiovascular dysfunction, renal parameters, polycystic ovarian syndrome, bone health, nutrition, gynecologic concerns, and mental health are reviewed here.
Adolesc Med State Art Rev 2008 Dec
PMID:Bariatric surgery in adolescents: mechanics, metabolism, and medical care. 1922 86

The metabolic syndrome (also known as dysmetabolic syndrome, MetS, Reaven syndrome, syndrome X, and insulin-resistance syndrome) is a well-recognized and all-too-frequently encountered fact of modern life, with staggering economic consequences. Various aspects of the metabolic syndrome are considered in this review, including such features as insulin resistance with glucose intolerance, hypertension, beta-cell failure, hyperinsulinemia, frank diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, and release of inflammatory and procoagulant factors into the circulation. Issues of management for the adolescent are considered also. Much can be accomplished for such youth by using the knowledge we currently have in hand, but many additional issues that are noted make the prospects for success extremely challenging for clinicians who deal with adolescent patients.
Adolesc Med State Art Rev 2008 Dec
PMID:The metabolic syndrome: a gathering challenge in a time of abundance. 1922 87


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Next >>