Researchers find way to reduce side effects from diabetes treatment

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In a new study from the University of Pennsylvania, researchers found a possible way to eliminate the risk of weight gain from a certain type of diabetes medication.

This will help more patients with diabetes get more effective treatment from modified thiazolidinediones.

The popularity of diabetes drugs called thiazolidinediones, which are also known as glitazones, has been reduced because of side effects such as weight gain.

They work by activating a fat cell protein called PPARgamma (PPARγ).

The protein occurs in two forms, PPARγ1 and PPARγ2, whose functional differences have been unclear.

But when the Penn researchers examined each form of the protein on its own, they found that activating just PPARγ2 with a thiazolidinedione drug protects mice from diabetes-like metabolic changes—without causing weight gain.

Type 2 diabetes is characterized by the progressive dysfunction of the insulin hormone signaling system in the body, resulting in chronic, high levels of glucose (sugar) in the blood.

This, in turn, contributes to the hardening of arteries, high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, and other serious diseases.

Thought to arise largely due to obesity, poor diets, and modern sedentary lifestyles, type 2 diabetes has become an epidemic in many countries.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has estimated that in the United States alone, about 35 million people, roughly 10 percent of the population, are living with the disorder.

Thiazolidinediones, which include rosiglitazone (under the brand name Avandia), were introduced in the 1990s, and for many years, were widely used as diabetes drugs.

They have since become less popular due to side effects.

This has led some researchers to investigate whether new compounds could be developed that retain these drugs’ therapeutic effects while having fewer side effects.

In the current study, the team examined the thiazolidinediones’ target, PPARγ, which helps control fat cell production.

They found that activation of these two forms of protein has subtly different downstream effects on gene activity.

The findings suggest that it may be possible to realize the benefits of thiazolidinediones without the weight gain side effect, by activating only PPARγ2 and not PPARγ1.

If you care about diabetes, please read studies about why some diabetes drugs could cause heart problems, and how to protect your eyes from diabetes.

For more information about diabetes, please see recent studies about a new COVID-19 drug for people with diabetes, and results show a new way to treat diabetes-associated Alzheimer’s disease.

The study was conducted by Wenxiang Hu et al., and published in Genes & Development.

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