Scientists identify new glucose metabolism regulator

MUNICH, Germany, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Scientists at the German Research Center for Environmental Health say they have discovered a new way glucose metabolism is regulated in the body.

In a study published in the journal Nature Communications, a research team identified a genetic switch in the liver that regulates both glucose metabolism and insulin action in other organs.

The switch was identified as a transforming growth factor beta 1-stimulated clone 22 D4, shorthanded as TSC22D4. The discovery builds on previous scholarship, which demonstrated the production of TSC22D4 in the liver of mice with cancer resulted in extreme weight loss.

"The strong influence of TSC22D4 on the metabolism in tumor diseases suggested that it could also play a role in metabolic diseases," first author Bilgen Ekim Üstünel said in a press release.

The team tested their hypothesis using a mouse model. Randomly assigned groups were examined for biological differences in TSC22D4 expression. Following the animal experiment, researchers analyzed liver tissue specimens taken from 66 patients with and without type 2 diabetes. The regulating gene was expressed more often in individuals with the disease.

The authors say the finding may have positive implications for patients living with diabetes mellitus, a chronic disease that affects the body's ability to turn the nutrients in food into energy.

"For the treatment of diabetes there is only a very limited number of therapeutic targets," lead researcher Stephan Herzig said. "Next, we want to investigate whether our findings can lead to the development of a new therapeutic approach to treat diabetes and insulin resistance."