research
Genetics of Type 2 Diabetes: association, interaction, prediction
- Publication date
- 16 June 2011
- Publisher
- Type 2 Diabetes is a common chronic disease that results from an imbalance between
the bodies insulin need and the production of insulin. It is a heterogeneous
disorder in which the relative contributions of insulin resistance and defects in
insulin secretion are highly variable between patients.
Insulin is produced by beta cells located in the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas.
It is a hormone with an extensive range of effects on metabolism. One of its main
functions is to facilitate glucose uptake in various body tissues to allow glycogen
storage. Besides a number of internal and external stimuli, the primary stimulus for
insulin secretion are elevated glucose levels. When a relative lack of insulin remains
untreated, this will eventually result in hyperglycaemia, i.e. diabetes.
Besides short term symptoms of hyperglycaemia, the main burden of type 2 diabetes
are its long term complications; retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy and
cardiovascular disease, which account for most of the morbidity and mortality of
the disease.
Worldwide type 2 diabetes is a rapidly growing health care issue, with an estimated
171 million patients worldwide in 2000 and the expectancy that this number will be
more than doubled by 2030. Although many researchers in the past decennia have
devoted their research to type 2 diabetes, much o