title: Molecular structure of glycogen in diabetic liver.
abstract: Liver glycogen (involved in maintaining blood-sugar levels) is a hyperbranched glucose polymer containing β particles (diameter ~20 nm), which can form composite α particles (diameter ~50-300 nm), and includes a small but significant amount of bound protein. Size distributions of glycogen from livers of healthy and diabetic mice were examined using size-exclusion chromatography with two separate eluents: aqueous eluent and dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) eluent. Morphologies were examined with transmission electron microscopy. Diabetic glycogen (DG) exhibited many α particles in the mild water-based solvent, but in DMSO, which breaks H bonds, these degraded to β particles; α particles however were always present in healthy glycogen (HG). This DG fragility shows the binding of β into α particles is different in HG and DG. The diabetic α particle fragility may be involved with the uncontrolled blood-sugar release symptomatic of diabetes: small β particles degrade more easily to glucose than α particles. This has implications for diabetes management.
authors: School of Pharmacy, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China, 430030.
authors: Bin
authors: B
authors: Deng
authors: Mitchell A
authors: MA
authors: Sullivan
authors: Jialun
authors: J
authors: Li
authors: Xinle
authors: X
authors: Tan
authors: Chengjun
authors: C
authors: Zhu
authors: Benjamin L
authors: BL
authors: Schulz
authors: Robert G
authors: RG
authors: Gilbert
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002850:Chromatography, Gel; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006003:Glycogen / Q000737:chemistry*; D008099:Liver / Q000737:chemistry*; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission
chemical_list: D006003:Glycogen