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Scientists identify ‘diabetic gene’
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Related Topics: BALTIMORE
BALTIMORE (Map, News) - A double set of a certain gene makes some people more vulnerable to developing diabetes late in life, though doctors say it is too early to turn this finding into therapy or treatment.
A study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine identifies a genetic variation that could be used to identify people more susceptible to developing diabetes.
“Type 2 diabetes clearly has a genetic component. We’ve known it for years of studying twins and families,” said Dr. Toni Pollin, a University of Maryland, Baltimore researcher who participated in the nationwide study.
Using results of a 1995 to 2001 study involving 3,234 people with pre-diabetic conditions, researchers established exactly which gene plays a role in diabetes.
The gene in question acts like a “master switch” regulating the function of other genes, said lead author Dr. Jose Florez, of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Researchers found one copy of the genetic variant in 40 percent of participants and two copies in 10 percent.
“For the 10 percent of people who inherited two copies of the variant, the risk of developing diabetes is about 80 percent higher than it is for noncarriers,” Florez said.
Targeting treatment to counteract the effects of the gene remains years away.
“We’re still very far from any effective treatment” resulting from this discovery, Pollin said.
The best prevention remains what doctors have advised for years, according to the American Diabetes Association: Eating healthy and getting plenty of exercise.
Even the participants at highest genetic risk can benefit from improving their diet or activity level, Pollin said. “Lifestyle modification is one very powerful way to influence whether or not you get diabetes.”
Diabetes facts
» 20.8 million Americans have diabetes.
» It can cause blindness, kidney failure and amputations, heart disease and stroke.
» Type 2 diabetes accounts for 95 percent of all cases.
» 40 percent of adults age 40 to 74 — 41 million people — have pre-diabetic conditions.
Source: NIH
khille@baltimoreexaminer.com
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4:32 PM MST on Tue., Sep. 9, 2008 re: "Muscle dysmorphia: The intense fear of being skinny"
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Examiner Reader said:
I wil add to my last comment. I was so self conscious about being skinny in high school. I was 6' 2' 140lbs. However, if my parents were not alcoholics, I probably would have seen the positives of being skinny instead of the negatives.
4 agree | 4 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
I wil add to my last comment. I was so self conscious about being skinny in high school. I was 6' 2' 140lbs. However, if my parents were not alcoholics, I probably would have seen the positives of being skinny instead of the negatives.
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Examiner Reader said:
I am a 52 year old men who is 6' 2' and weight fluctuates between 170lbs and 180 lbs. I was made fun of by me two brothers for being tall and skinny as well as my father who is also tall and skinny and was teased by his parents for being tall and skinny. My parents are alcholics and I got clean and sober 22 years ago and have learned to love myself. I now enjoy being tall and skinny instead of hating it. Beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder.
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Examiner Reader said:
i can relate this article in our hospital her in the philippines. especially in the main e.r. patient came in and out inh the e.r and i observe some of the staff are not attending the patients; and the e.r doctors are not in the duty or they are not in the e.r room. also i noticed that our e.r is lack of instrumnet being used to the patient. may the problem is in our goverment not in the hospital... thanks for the insight author.
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Examiner Reader said:
""Several members of the board, left, right and center, think this has been poorly thought out,” Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin told The Examiner. “Fisherman’s Wharf is the goose that lays the golden egg for San Francisco. We don’t want to commit economic suicide.”" What an absolute crock... completely political on the part of this Supervisor and any other of them. Neighborhood groups continually contact their District Superviors about impact of street fairs and large events in and close to residential areas for years and we are told we are just "killing" the spirit of fun in The City. Well now is a chance to have fun when it doesn't impact neighborhoods. Just the same old political BS from Supervisors who continually enjoy conflict.
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Examiner Reader said:
Sometimes Mayor Newsom can be so clueless. Real life can be considerably different outside "Newsom-land" in the Mayor's head.
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Examiner Reader said:
In March, Izzy's got a 42 and spent quite a bit of money to follow code and improve. 3 months later they recieve negative press while pending inspection. Latest score--94. How about positive press instead of slamming local hard working firms.
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Examiner Reader said:
My 9-year-old son had open heart surgery and was on the heart/lung machine during his surgery,after which he experienced anxiety and depression and had thoughts of suicide. He took his own life at 17 years old. I wish I had known this risk of the heart surgery and specifically the risk of being on the heart/lung machine.
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Examiner Reader Hater said:
Did you even read the article?
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Examiner Reader said:
I think its incredibly important to know exactly what goes into our food so we can make an educated guess in deciding what goes into our bodies is the best thing for us in order to take better care of ourselves. Had we been informed of the risk of adding sugary and fattening fried food into our diet, we would have never allow these filthy thing to touch our lips. Fried and sugary food should have been expensive, and NOT healthy, nutritious food for our consumption. Also once these bad, nutritionally poor food is consumed, it is unusually addictive and bad habits can be hard to break.
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