The data indicate that there are at least approximately 171 million people worldwide who suffer from diabetes mellitus, and this number continues to increase every year.
A study led by Professor Makoto Tominaga and Dr. Uchida Kunitoshi of National Institute for Physiological Sciences (NIPS), found that TRPM2 ion channel in pancreatic beta cells to secrete insulin have a role.
Clarify the mechanism of insulin secretion is important for the development of diabetes therapy. This study focused on examining the TRPM2 acts as a temperature sensor.
TRPM2 is a Ca2 +-permeable channels that are sensitive to temperature in pancreatic beta cells.
This study showed that mice lacking TRPM2 have blood glucose levels higher and impaired insulin secretion compared to normal mice.
Pancreatic beta cells lacking TRPM2 shows the number of intracellular Ca2 + and insulin secretion less.
Professor Makoto Tominaga and Dr. Kunitoshi Uchida said that TRPM2 can control insulin secretion levels mainly by modulating intracellular Ca2 + concentration.
In addition they added that by finding a substance that can stimulate TRPM2 effectiveness could lead to the development of new therapies for diabetes mellitus.
