Our immune system generates an inflammatory reaction whenever a cell is impaired. According to Thomas Mandrup-Poulsen, a University of Copenhagen professor of biomedical sciences, this response suppresses the cell from producing insulin.
Ribonucleic-acid or RNA is a crucial messenger that directs the cells to make insulin. When it’s in an infected condition, a cell is forced to form substances that harm its own life. In protecting itself, the cells corrupt the harmful RNA molecules and gradually, it leads to the degeneration of the beneficial RNA molecules that makes insulin.
In petri dishes, the researchers tested insulin-producing cell lines and tissues from sick and healthy humans. They uncovered that inflammation multiplies the generation of the cells’ degradation systems, which affects the production of insulin. Mandrup-Poulsen, the author of the study, says that this might be the component that causes missing insulin production in Type-2 diabetes.
Experiments have only been done on healthy people and animals so for now, there would be no medicines entering the market yet. The team is planning to proceed with their studies by using animal models and people with diabetes. The study hopes to formulate a medicine that would hinder the degradation of the insulin messenger RNA, which would basically kick-start the insulin production while it’s in a state that production is inconceivable. Inflammation has been becoming a major detriment for scientists to improve our overall health. Low inflammation was found to be an indicator in Japan’s successful aging among the oldest population.
