The hormone leptin, regarded as a potential source of new fat-fighting drugs, may also be able to play a role in preventing a form of diabetes, scientists say. In a report in edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas said leptin may be able to prevent type II diabetes (noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus). Obesity can contribute to that form of the disease. The new research was based on studies of rats, and there was uncertainty among scientists about whether the hormone worked the same way in humans. The Texas researchers found that leptin receptors work in several organs, including the pancreas, the source of insulin. Earlier studies focused on how leptin works in the brain to control appetite.
"Our findings show for the first time that if you take tissue out of the body and put it in a little culture dish, where there is obviously is no central nervous system, then add leptin, you will find that leptin has a direct effect on fat degradation," Michio Shimabukuro, a scientist at Southwestern, said.
The study linked defective leptin receptors to obesity, which in turn prevented insulin from correctly controlling glucose, which is a large part of what goes wrong in type II diabetes.
"Our findings show for the first time that if you take tissue out of the body and put it in a little culture dish, where there is obviously is no central nervous system, then add leptin, you will find that leptin has a direct effect on fat degradation," Michio Shimabukuro, a scientist at Southwestern, said.
The study linked defective leptin receptors to obesity, which in turn prevented insulin from correctly controlling glucose, which is a large part of what goes wrong in type II diabetes.
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