Project summary
In type 2 diabetes the beta cells in the pancreas struggle to release insulin in the usual way. Professor Herbert’s made a discovery about some proteins that are important in this process. He’s now going to take this information forward and learn more about how these proteins stick to other molecules and work to release insulin.
Background to research
Insulin is made and released from beta cells in the pancreas to control blood sugar levels. In type 2 diabetes the beta cells develop problems which means they can’t release insulin normally. This starts to happen early in type 2 diabetes and tends to get worse over time. So it’s important for scientists to understand what goes wrong and why.
Professor Herbert and his team have recently discovered a group of proteins that are important in the release of insulin from beta cells. He’s also found that these proteins stick to something called RNA. You can think of RNA as being the halfway step between a gene making a protein.
What’s really interesting is that the same signals that make beta cells release insulin also make these proteins stick to RNA. This tells us that these proteins are important in the release of insulin from beta cells to control blood sugar levels.
Research aims
Professor Herbert and his team plan to build on their findings and work out why it’s important for the proteins to stick to RNA.
Firstly, they’re going to do this by using human cells grown in the laboratory. They’ll use very detailed systems to see insulin being released from the cells. Then they’ll work out why the proteins stick to RNA by blocking the RNA and seeing how this affects the release of insulin. They’ll then confirm all their results by running the experiments with cells from mice.
Potential benefit to people with diabetes
One in ten people over the age of 40 in the UK are now living with type 2 diabetes. Problems with the release of insulin from beta cells are seen not only in type 2 diabetes but also in gestational diabetes, a form of diabetes in pregnancy.
This work could advance our understanding of how beta cells release insulin and what goes wrong with this process in people living with type 2 diabetes. In the future, it may lead to new treatments for people with or at risk of type 2 diabetes that can keep the beta cells working normally to prevent or reverse the condition.
