Insulin Resistance Targeted in Two New Studies
Reported July 20, 2005

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Two new studies take a look at insulin resistance -- a condition that often leads to diabetes.

In the first study, Swedish investigators examined whether insulin resistance might put people at increased risk for developing congestive heart failure (CHF). The researchers decided to look at a possible link because previous studies have shown people with diabetes are more likely to develop the heart condition, which is a major cause of death and disability in the general population.

The study involved nearly 1,190 men who were age 70 or older when the study began. None had CHF at the time. Over about a nine-year follow-up period, about 100 of the men developed CHF, and results showed those with insulin resistance were more likely to fall into that group, even after researchers adjusted their findings to take other CHF risk factors into account.

The second study comes from investigators at Yale University and suggests insulin resistance in the liver may be triggered by a substance called diacyglycerol. The research, which was conducted in mice, may one day lead to the development of new drugs aimed at a specific enzyme related to the production of diacyglycerol and could provide a better treatment for the condition.

SOURCES: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 2005;294:334-341, Cell Metabolism, 2005;2:55-65