Beta-cell apoptosis in type 2 diabetes: quantitative and functional consequences.
Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of diabetes in humans, is characterized by impaired insulin secretion paralleled by a progressive decline in beta-cell function and chronic insulin resistance. Several authors have showed that in type 2 diabetes there is a reduction of islet and/or insulin-containing cell mass or volume. Regulation of the beta-cell mass appears to involve a balance of beta-cell replication and apoptosis but, at the molecular level, pancreatic beta-cell loss by apoptosis appears to play an important role in the development of insulin deficiency and the onset and/or progression of the disease. The mechanisms favoring apoptosis in type 2 diabetic pancreatic islets and new potential therapeutic approaches to prevent beta-cell death and maintain beta-cell mass are discussed.
Lupi
R
R
Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Section of Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases, University of Pise, Italy.
Del Prato
S
S
D000284:Administration, Oral; D000682:Amyloid / Q000502:physiology; D017209:Apoptosis; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D050417:Insulin-Secreting Cells / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology*; D058228:Islet Amyloid Polypeptide; D013453:Sulfonylurea Compounds / Q000627:therapeutic use
D000682:Amyloid; D001786:Blood Glucose; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D058228:Islet Amyloid Polypeptide; D013453:Sulfonylurea Compounds