A new study of the molecular link between obesity and type 2 diabetes has revealed about the potential therapy.
Obesity causes inflammation, which can in turn lead to type 2 diabetes, and what isn't well established is how inflammation causes diabetes or what can be done to stop it.
Researchers at University of California have discovered that the inflammatory molecule LTB4 promotes insulin resistance, a first step in developing type 2 diabetes and found that genetically removing the cell receptor that responds to LTB4, or blocking it with a drug, improves insulin sensitivity in obese mice.
Senior author Jerrold M. Olefsky said that this study is important because it reveals a root cause of type 2 diabetes and now that they understand that LTB4 is the inflammatory factor causing insulin resistance, they can inhibit it to break the link between obesity and diabetes.
Olefsky added that when they disrupted the LTB4-induced inflammation cycle either through genetics or a drug, it had a beautiful effect and they saw improved metabolism and insulin sensitivity in their mice
Olefsky noted that even though the mice were still obese, they were in much better shape.
The study is published by Nature Medicine.
