Vitamin A More Important to Diabetes Than Previously Believed
A new study suggests that vitamin A may help insulin production. Previously labeled "orphan receptors" in beta-cells that produce insulin are now linked with the vitamin, which may affect those cells' development and the body's normal insulin production process.
A research team at King's College in London and the Oxford Centre for Diabetes have mapped 220 different receptors on the surface of insulin-producing beta cells. One finding was that the cells surfaces expressed a receptor for vitamin A, which was previously unknown.
The researchers then worked with cells from mice and donors who were both diabetic and non-diabetic. They found a direct link with insulin production.
The researchers saw a close to a 30 percent reduction in insulin production when the beta cells were blocked from receiving vitamin A.
The cells actually die when in complete deficiency. This discovery could be significant for both type 2 diabetes and a type of type 1 diabetes. "In animal experiments it is known that newborn mice need vitamin A to develop their beta-cells in a normal way. Most likely, the same applies to human beings. Children must absorb a sufficient amount of vitamin A through their diet", says Albert Salehi, lead researcher on the project.
The team is now looking for potential "substitutes" for vitamin A to these cell receptors. This could lead to supplements or treatments that do not pose the risk of potential side-effects as found with over-supplementation of vitamin A.
Over-supplementation of vitamin A through non-food means can result in higher risks for osteoporosis and other diseases.
Source: MedicalXpress.com
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