Pancreatic alpha-Cell Dysfunction in Type 2 Diabetes: Old Kids on the Block

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) has been known as 'bi-hormonal disorder' since decades ago, the role of glucagon from alpha-cell has languished whereas beta-cell taking center stage. Recently, numerous findings indicate that the defects of glucagon secretion get involve with development and exacerbation of hyperglycemia in T2D. Aberrant alpha-cell responses exhibit both fasting and postprandial states: hyperglucagonemia contributes to fasting hyperglycemia caused by inappropriate hepatic glucose production, and to postprandial hyperglycemia owing to blunted alpha-cell suppression. During hypoglycemia, insufficient counter-regulation response is also observed in advanced T2D. Though many debates still remained for exact mechanisms behind the dysregulation of alpha-cell in T2D, it is clear that the blockade of glucagon receptor or suppression of glucagon secretion from alpha-cell would be novel therapeutic targets for control of hyperglycemia. Whereas there have not been remarkable advances in developing new class of drugs, currently available glucagon-like peptide-1 and dipeptidyl peptidase-IV inhibitors could be options for treatment of hyperglucagonemia. In this review, we focus on alpha-cell dysfunction and therapeutic potentials of targeting alpha-cell in T2D.

GLP-1 receptor activation effects the p38MAPK signal pathway in hepatic stellate cells / 中华肝脏病杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effects of activation of the GLP-1 receptor on the p38MAPK signaling pathway in hepatic stellate cells (HSCs).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>HSCs were isolated and identified according to morphological features; the levels of GLP-1R protein were determined by western blotting.The HSCs were randomly divided into a control grouP (normal saline treatment) and experimental grouP(liraglutide treatment); after 120 hours, the expression of p38MAPK mRNA was examined by RT-PCR and of phosphorylated (p)-p38MAPK protein was detected by western blotting.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>GLP-1R proteins were detected in the HSCs. Compared with the control group, the experimental group showed significantly decreased p38MAPK mRNA and p-p38MAPK protein (both P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The p38MAPK signaling pathway could be down-regulated when GLP-1R is activated in HSCs.</p>

Biological activity studies of the novel glucagon-like peptide-1 derivative HJ07 / 中国天然药物

AIM@#To identify the glucose lowering ability and chronic treatment effects of a novel coumarin-glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) conjugate HJ07.@*METHOD@#A receptor activation experiment was performed in HEK 293 cells and the glucose lowering ability was evaluated with hypoglycemic duration and glucose stabilizing tests. Chronic treatment was performed by daily injection of exendin-4, saline, and HJ07. Body weight and HbA1c were measured every week, and an intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test was performed before treatment and after treatment.@*RESULTS@#HJ07 showed well-preserved receptor activation efficacy. The hypoglycemic duration test showed that HJ07 possessed a long-acting, glucose-lowering effect and the glucose stabilizing test showed that the antihyperglycemic activity of HJ07 was still evident at a predetermined time (12 h) prior to the glucose challenge (0 h). The long time glucose-lowering effect of HJ07 was better than native GLP-1 and exendin-4. Furthermore, once daily injection of HJ07 to db/db mice achieved long-term beneficial effects on HbA1c lowering and glucose tolerance.@*CONCLUSION@#The biological activity results of HJ07 suggest that HJ07 is a potential long-acting agent for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

Drugs developed for treatment of diabetes show protective effects in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases / 生理学报

Type 2 diabetes has been identified as a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). In the brains of patients with AD and PD, insulin signaling is impaired. This finding has motivated new research that showed good effects using drugs that initially had been developed to treat diabetes. Preclinical studies showed good neuroprotective effects applying insulin or long lasting analogues of incretin peptides. In transgenic animal models of AD or PD, analogues of the incretin GLP-1 prevented neurodegenerative processes and improved neuronal and synaptic functionality and reduced the symptoms of the diseases. Amyloid plaque load and synaptic loss as well as cognitive impairment had been prevented in transgenic AD mouse models, and dopaminergic loss of transmission and motor function has been reversed in animal models of PD. On the basis of these promising findings, several clinical trials are being conducted with the first encouraging clinical results already published. In several pilot studies in AD patients, the nasal application of insulin showed encouraging effects on cognition and biomarkers. A pilot study in PD patients testing a GLP-1 receptor agonist that is currently on the market as a treatment for type 2 diabetes (exendin-4, Byetta) also showed encouraging effects. Several other clinical trials are currently ongoing in AD patients, testing another GLP-1 analogue that is on the market (liraglutide, Victoza). Recently, a third GLP-1 receptor agonist has been brought to the market in Europe (Lixisenatide, Lyxumia), which also shows very promising neuroprotective effects. This review will summarise the range of these protective effects that those drugs have demonstrated. GLP-1 analogues show promise in providing novel treatments that may be protective or even regenerative in AD and PD, something that no current drug does.

Effect of the combination of metformin and fenofibrate on glucose homeostasis in diabetic Goto-Kakizaki rats

Metformin has been reported to increase the expression of the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor in pancreatic beta cells in a peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-alpha-dependent manner. We investigated whether a PPARalpha agonist, fenofibrate, exhibits an additive or synergistic effect on glucose metabolism, independent of its lipid-lowering effect, when added to metformin. Non-obese diabetic Goto-Kakizaki (GK) rats were divided into four groups and treated for 28 days with metformin, fenofibrate, metformin plus fenofibrate or vehicle. The random blood glucose levels, body weights, food intake and serum lipid profiles were not significantly different among the groups. After 4 weeks, metformin, but not fenofibrate, markedly reduced the blood glucose levels during oral glucose tolerance tests, and this effect was attenuated by adding fenofibrate. Metformin increased the expression of the GLP-1 receptor in pancreatic islets, whereas fenofibrate did not. During the intraperitoneal glucose tolerance tests with the injection of a GLP-1 analog, metformin and/or fenofibrate did not alter the insulin secretory responses. In conclusion, fenofibrate did not confer any beneficial effect on glucose homeostasis but reduced metformin's glucose-lowering activity in GK rats, thus discouraging the addition of fenofibrate to metformin to improve glycemic control.

The role of glucagon-like peptide-1 and its receptor in the mechanism of metabolic surgery / 中华胃肠外科杂志

At present, surgery has become one of the treatments for type 2 diabetes, but it is still unclear about the therapeutic mechanism. Many experiments has proved that the anatomical and physiological structure has been altered leading to significant changes related to the secretion of gastrointestinal hormones and neuropeptides. These molecular are related to the metabolism of glucose, functions of islet cells and sensitivity of insulin. Intensive studies of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) play an important role in the surgical treatment of diabetes and now it has gained increasing recognition. However, GLP-1 must be combined with GLP-1 receptor (GLP-1R) to execute its function. In this paper we reviewed the role of GLP-1 and its receptor in the mechanism of metabolic surgery.

Conserved W52 led to reduced binding of glucogan-like peptide 1 receptor / 生物工程学报

Through phage display, we tried to find out whether the N-terminal fragment of glucogan-like peptide 1 receptor (nGLP-1R) still had binding activity to Exendin-4 after missing one or two gene segments. By error-prone PCR, We constructed a randomly mutated phage display peptide library with different length of the N-terminal (21-145 residues) extracellular domain of glucogan-like peptide 1 receptor (GLP-1R) from rat lung. A mutant named EP16 without binding activity was found by ELISA. Through sequence alignment we found that EP16 missed the first 20 and last 10 amino acids and the 52nd tryptophan was mutated to arginine. In order to determine why Ep16 did not show its binding ability to Exendin-4, a wild type EP16 without the first 20 and last 10 amino acids and nGLP-1R(W52R) was constructed in which the 52nd tryptophan was mutated to arginine. The contrastive analysis showed that the substitution of W52R led to a markedly reduced binding ability of EP16. The mutation of the conserved W52 could change the biologic activity of the protein. The lack of the first 20 and last 10 amino acids had no effect on its biologic activity. Therefore, the mutation of a single amino acid residue of the key sequence could change the biologic activity of the nGLP-1R.

GLP-1 Receptor Agonist and Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), one of the most common liver diseases, is caused by the disruption of hepatic lipid homeostasis. It is associated with insulin resistance as seen in type 2 diabetes mellitus. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is an incretin that increases insulin sensitivity and aids glucose metabolism. In recent in vivo and in vitro studies, GLP-1 presents a novel therapeutic approach against NAFLD by increasing fatty acid oxidation, decreasing lipogenesis, and improving hepatic glucose metabolism. In this report, we provide an overview of the role and mechanism of GLP-1 in relieving NAFLD.

New Therapeutics for Diabetes Using Incretin Hormone / 대한내과학회지

New therapeutics for type 2 diabetes using incretin hormone were introduced recently. Incretin-based therapies consist of two types: GLP-1 agonists mainly acting on the GLP-1 receptor and dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors (DPP-4 inhibitors). The former is resistant to DPP-4 and injectable. The latter is oral medications raising endogenous GLP-1 by inhibiting the degrading enzyme DPP-4. The incretin based therapies are promising and more commonly used due to their action and safety profile. Stimulation of insulin secretion by these drugs occurs in a glucose-dependent manner. Incretin based therapies have low risk for hypoglycemia. The subsequent review outlines evidence from selected clinical trials of the currently available GLP-1 agonists, exenatide and liraglutide, and DPP-4 inhibitors, sitagliptin and vildagliptin.

Exendin-4 Protects Oxidative Stress-Induced beta-Cell Apoptosis through Reduced JNK and GSK3beta Activity

Oxidative stress induced by chronic hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes plays a crucial role in progressive loss of beta-cell mass through beta-cell apoptosis. Glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) has effects on preservation of beta-cell mass and its insulin secretory function. GLP-1 possibly increases islet cell mass through stimulated proliferation from beta-cell and differentiation to beta-cell from progenitor cells. Also, it probably has an antiapoptotic effect on beta-cell, but detailed mechanisms are not proven. Therefore, we examined the protective mechanism of GLP-1 in beta-cell after induction of oxidative stress. The cell apoptosis decreased to ~50% when cells were treated with 100 microM H2O2 for up to 2 hr. After pretreatment of Ex-4, GLP-1 receptor agonist, flow cytometric analysis shows 41.7% reduction of beta-cell apoptosis. This data suggested that pretreatment of Ex-4 protect from oxidative stress-induced apoptosis. Also, Ex-4 treatment decreased GSK3beta activation, JNK phosphorylation and caspase-9, -3 activation and recovered the expression of insulin2 mRNA in beta-cell lines and secretion of insulin in human islet. These results suggest that Ex-4 may protect beta-cell apoptosis by blocking the JNK and GSK3beta mediated apoptotic pathway.

Glucagon-like peptide 1: a novel therapeutic strategy for Alzheimer's disease / 生理学报

There is a close correlation between type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the course of pathophysiological processes. The neuroprotective action of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), a latest drug for clinical treatment of T2DM, is being more deeply investigated at present, and a novel therapeutic strategy for AD with GLP-1 has been proposed boldly. This review mainly discussed the correlation of pathogenesis between T2DM and AD, the synthesis and secretion of GLP-1, the distribution and physiological effects of GLP-1 receptor in the brain, and the progresses on the study of GLP-1 in the treatment of AD.

A novel cell model targeted on GLP-1 receptor for application to anti-diabetic candidates screening / 药学学报

The aim of this project is to establish a GLP-1 signaling pathway targeted cell model, for screening the new class of GLP-1 receptor agonists as anti-diabetic candidates. Firstly construct a recombined plasmid with multi-copied specific response element (RIP-CRE) regulated by GLP-1 signaling pathway and E-GFP reporter gene. Transient transfect this recombined plasmid into islet cell NIT-1, then detect the responsibility of transfected cell to GLP-1 analogue, Exendin 4. For secondly, use stable transfection and monocloning cell culture to obtain a GLP-1 signaling-specific cell line. It indicates that this cell model can response to Exendin 4, which response can be completely inhibited by GLP-1 receptor antagonist, Exendin 9-39, further showing GLP-1 receptor specific activity with a cAMP-PKA-independently mechanism. Establishment of this novel cell model can be used in high-throughput drug screening of peptides or small molecular GLP-1 analogues.

Geniposide inhibits CoCl2-induced PC12 cells death via the mitochondrial pathway / 中华医学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>BACKGROUND</b>A number of studies have shown that oxidative stress and mitochondrial involvement are major triggering factors in the development of neurodegenerative diseases. Cobalt chloride (CoCl(2))-induced cell death in PC12 cells may serve a simple and convenient in vitro model of hypoxia-induced neuronal cytotoxicity. To explore the effect of geniposide on CoCl(2) which induced cytotoxicity and mitochondrial function in rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cells, we analyzed the influence of geniposide on the expression of apoptosis-related proteins.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>PC12 cells and RNAi PC12 cells were treated with 0, 12.5, 25, 50, 100 micromol/L geniposide for 12 hours and then exposure to 400 micromol/L CoCl(2) for 12 hours. Cell viability, cell morphology, and expression of Bcl-2, Bax, P53 and caspase-9 were determined using Western blotting.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Pretreatment with geniposide markedly improved the cells viability and morphology, decreased the expression of Bax, P53 and caspase-9, and increased the expression of Bcl-2 in PC12 cells challenged by CoCl(2)2. However, in the RNAi PC12 cells, geniposide had no significant effect on the expression of these proteins.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Geniposide protects PC12 cells from CoCl(2) involved in mitochondrial mediated apoptosis, and GLP-1R might play a critical role in the neuroprotection of geniposide in PC12 cells.</p>

Beta Cells Preservation in Diabetes using GLP-1 and Its Analog / 한양의대학술지

Diabetes Mellitus is a metabolic disease caused by impaired insulin secretion of pancreatic beta cells and increased insulin resistance of peripheral tissues. In Asian T2DM, progressive loss of beta cells mass and concomitant reduction of insulin secretion are more fundamental problems than peripheral insulin resistance. To solve this problem, research fields about investigation how stimulated islet cell growth and block the islet cell death is getting more important. Recently introduced drug, Glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) has many beneficial roles in treatment of diabetes. GLP-1 stimulated glucose dependent insulin secretion and also can preserve beta cell mass through stimulation of beta cell growth and differentiation and protection of beta cell death from hyperglycemic stress. After treatment of GLP-1 or Exendin-4 (GLP-1 receptor agonist), beta cell mass is increased in animal models. This can be achieved through beta cell proliferation in islet or differentiation from intrapancreatic progenitor cells like ductal epithelium. The mechanism of beta cell proliferation is mediated by the PKA-CREB pathway. After activation of GLP-1 receptor, intracellular cAMP is elevated and then it activates PKA and CREB phosphorylation. Translocation of CREB into the nucleus up-regulates PDX-1 andIRS-2. Another pathway for beta cell proliferation is trans-activation of EGFR via c-Src after GLP-1 receptor activated. The notch pathway, major determinant of pancreas development in the embryonic stage, can be participate beta mass preservation through activation of gamma secretase in the beta cell membrane. Cleaved intracellular part of the notch translocates to the nucleus and binds to the pdx-1 promoter region. In hyperglycemia, oxidative and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress can be caused by apoptosis of the beta cell. Protection of apoptosis is another tool for beta cell mass preservation. After treatment of GLP-1 or exendin-4, beta cell apoptosis induced by oxidative and ER stress can be protected. GLP-1 can modulate JNK and GSK 3beta activation and ER chaperone and ER stress response. In treatment of diabetes, GLP-1 increases insulin secretion with glucose dependent manner and also preserves beta cell mass against progressive beta cell loss

Protective Effects of Glucagon Like Peptide-1 on HIT-T15 beta Cell Apoptosis via ER Stress Induced by 2-deoxy-D-glucose / 당뇨병

BACKGROUND: The characteristic feature of pancreatic beta cells is highly developed endoplasmic reticulum (ER) due to a heavy engagement in insulin secretion. The ER serves several important function, including post-translational modification, folding, and assembly of newly synthesized secretory proteins, and its proper function is essential to cell survival. Various stress conditions can interfere with ER function. Pancreatic beta cells may be particularly vulnerable to ER stress that causes to impair insulin biosynthesis and beta cell survival through apoptosis. Glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a new drug for treatment of type 2 diabetes and has effects on stimulation of insulin secretion and beta cell preservation. Also, it may have an antiapoptotic effect on beta cells, but detailed mechanisms are not proven. Therefore, we investigated the protective mechanism of GLP-1 in beta cells through ER stress response induced by 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2DG). METHODS: For induction of the ER stress, HIT-T15 cells (hamster beta cell line) were treated with 2DG (10 mM). Apoptosis was evaluated with MTT assay, hoechst 33342 staining and Annexin/PI flow cytometry. Expression of ER stress-related molecules was determined by real-time PCR or western blot. For blocking ER stress, we pretreated HIT-T15 cells with exendin-4 (Ex-4; GLP-1 receptor agonist) for 1 hour before stress induction. RESULTS: After induction with ER stress (2DG), beta cells were lost by apoptosis. We found that Ex-4 had a protective effect through ER stress related molecules (GRP78, GRP94, XBP-1, eIF2alpha, CHOP) modulation. Also, Ex-4 recovered the expression of insulin2 mRNA in beta cells. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that GLP-1 may protect beta cells apoptosis through ER stress modulation.

The Effects of Exendin-4 on IRS-2 Expression and Phosphorylation in INS-1 Cells / 당뇨병

BACKGROUND: Insulin receptor substrate 2 (IRS-2) is a key regulator of beta cell proliferation and apoptosis. This study was aimed to investigate effect of the glucolipotoxicity on apoptosis in INS-1 cell, and the effect of Exendin-4, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, on IRS-2 expression in the glucolipotoxicity induced INS-1 cell. The goal was to discover the new action mechanism and function of Exendin-4 in beta cell apoptosis. METHOD: INS-1 cells were cultured in glucolipotoxic condition for 2, 4 or 6 days and were categorized as G groups. Another group in which 50 nM Exendin-4 was added to INS-1 cells, cultured in glucolipotoxic condition, were named as Ex-4 groups. We investigated the expression of IRS-2 by RT-PCR, phosphorylated IRS-2 and phosphorylated Akt protein levels by western blot. We measured the apoptosis ratio of INS-1 cell in glucolipotoxic condition by TUNEL staining in both groups. RESULT: IRS-2 expression of INS-1 cells decreased with correlation to the time of exposure to glucolipotoxic condition. pIRS-2 and pAkt protein levels decreased in the similar pattern in glucolipotoxicity group. However, this effect of glucolipotoxicity on INS-1 cell was inhibited by the Exendin-4 treatment. In the Ex-4 groups, IRS-2 expression, pIRS-2 and pAkt protein levels remained at the similar level to low glucose condition state. Also, apoptosis induced by glucolipotoxicity was suppressed by Exendin-4 treatment significantly. CONCLUSION: We showed that the long-term treatment of Exendin-4 inhibited the apoptosis of beta cells significantly in glucolipotoxic condition and that this effect of Exendin-4 was related with IRS-2 and Akt among the beta cell's intracellular signal transduction pathway.

Exendin-4 protected murine MIN6 pancreatic beta-cells from oxidative stress-induced apoptosis via down-regulation of NF-kappaB-iNOS-NO pathway / 药学学报

To explore the effect of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist--Exendin-4 (Ex-4) on murine MIN6 pancreatic beta-cells apoptosis induced by oxidative stress, the morphological changes of cell damage were evaluated by epifluorescence microscopy after staining with AO-EB. The percentage of cell apoptosis was determined by flow cytometric assay after Annexin-V-FITC-PI staining. Nitric oxide level was measured by Griess reagent assay. Inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) protein and NF-kappaBp65 fragment were detected by Western blotting. Ex-4 inhibited the increase of nitrite level and percentage of apoptosis induced by t-BHP in MIN6 cells. Furthermore, Ex-4 partly reduced the expression of iNOS protein and the ratio of NF-kappaBp65 protein in nucleus:cytosol induced by t-BHP. These results suggest that Ex4 protects MIN6 pancreatic kappa-cells from oxidative stress-induced apoptosis via down-regulation of NF-kappaB-iNOS-nitric oxide pathway.

Microarray Analysis of Thyroid Stimulating Hormone, Insulin-Like Growth Factor-1, and Insulin-Induced Gene Expression in FRTL-5 Thyroid Cells

To determine which genes are regulated by thyroid stimulating hormone (thyrotropin, TSH), insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in the rat thyroid, we used the microarray technology and observed the changes in gene expression. The expressions of genes for bone morphogenetic protein 6, the glucagon receptor, and cyclin D1 were increased by both TSH and IGF-1; for cytochrome P450, 2c37, the expression was decreased by both. Genes for cholecystokinin, glucuronidase, beta, demethyl-Q 7, and cytochrome c oxidase, subunit VIIIa, were up-regulated; the genes for ribosomal protein L37 and ribosomal protein L4 were down-regulated by TSH and insulin. However, there was no gene observed to be regulated by all three: TSH, IGF-1, and insulin molecules studied. These findings suggest that TSH, IGF-1, and insulin stimulate different signal pathways, which can interact with one another to regulate the proliferation of thyrocytes, and thereby provide additional influence on the process of cellular proliferation.

Transfection and identification of the cloned strain that stably expressing glucagon like peptide-2 receptor in CaCO2 cell lines / 中华烧伤杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To establish Caco2 cell line with stable expression of glucagon like peptide-2 receptor( GLP-2R) , in order to establish an in vitro model for the study of protective mechanism of GLP-2 of the intestinal tract.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The GLP-2R/pcDNA3. 1 ( + ) plasmid was verified by restriction endonuclease and sequencing , and then it was transfected into Caco2 cells with lipofectamine. After G418 selection, the clones with stable expression of GLP-2R were obtained by limited dilution cloning and expanding. The mRNA and protein expression of GLP-2R in normal human intestine, Caco2 cells, HER293, VE cells, as well as in transfected Caco2 cells were determined with RT-PCR and Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The sequence of GLP-2R/pcDNA 3. 1 plasmid was correct. No expression of GLP-2R mRNA and protein was found in HER293 and VE cells, but weak expression were found in Caco2 cells, and strong expression was found in normal human intestines. The expression of GLP-2R mRNA and protein expression in Caco2/GLP-2R ( + ) cells were obviously increased after transfection.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>GLP-2R has special distribution. The expression of GLP-2R is weak in normal Caco2 cells. The establishment of Caco2/GLP-2R ( + ) cellular model is beneficial for the further research of the mechanism of action of GLP-2.</p>

Mutação GLY40SER no gene receptor do glucagon: estudo de sua associação com o diabetes mellitus tipo 2 e função da Célula beta / Gly4oSer in the glucagon receptor gene: association study with type 2 diabetes mellitus and beta-cell function

O glucagon exerce papel importante na homeostase da glicose, estimulando através de seus próprios receptores, a produçao hepática de glicose e a secreçao de insulina. Recentemente, uma mutaçao Gly4OSer no gene do receptor do glucagon foi descrita como associada ao diabetes mellitus do tipo 2 (DM tipo 2) em alguns grupos populacionais. Os objetivos deste estudo foram investigar uma possível associaçao da mutaçao Gly4OSer com o DM tipo 2 em nosso meio, assim como avaliar as implicaçoes "in vivo" da presença desta mutaçao na funçao da célula b e na resposta glicêmica ao glucagon. Foram analisados 115 indivíduos com DM tipo 2 (mediana de 53 anos) e 115 indivíduos nao diabéticos, sem antecedentes familiares em 1º grau de diabetes (mediana de 48 anos) (p=O,273). A mutaçao foi detectada em dois dos indivíduos diabéticos (1,7 por cento) e em quatro dos indivíduos nao diabéticos (3,5 por cento) (p=O,679). Além disto, investigamos 11 familiares em lº grau dos dois pacientes diabéticos afetados e a mutaçao estava presente em três deles: diabetes mellitus foi diagnosticado em dois indivíduos (60 e 62 anos) e tolerância à glicose normal em um (32 anos). As implicaçoes fisiopatológicas da presença desta mutaçao foram avaliadas através da administraçao endovenosa de 1mg de glucagon com dosagens do peptídeo C (O e 6 min) e da glicemia (O, 30, 60, 90 e 120 min); primeira fase da secreçao insulínica (1 + 3 min) no teste endovenoso de tolerância à glicose; razao molar pró-insulina / peptídeo C basais e valores do glucagon plasmático basal. Verificou-se que entre os indivíduos diabéticos, os portadores da mutaçao apresentavam valores do peptídeo C de jejum inferiores aos dos diabéticos sem a mutaçao (O,70 ng/ml vs. I,50 ng/ml; p=O,OO8), assim como a área sob a curva do peptídeo C (O e 6 min) (8,56 ng.min/ml vs. 12,90 ng.min/ml; p=O,OO4). No entanto, nao foram encontradas diferenças na resposta glícêmica ao glucagon, primeira fase da secreçao insulínica no teste endovenoso de tolerância à glicose, razao molar pró-insulina / peptídeo C basais e glucagon basal entre os dois grupos. Nos indivíduos com tolerância à glicose normal, portadores e nao portadores da mutaçao, nao foram observadas diferenças significantes em nenhum dos parâmetros avaliados. Em conclusao, nao verificamos associaçao entre a presença da mutaçao Gly4OSer no gene do receptor do glucagon e o DM tipo 2 na populaçao estudada...(au)