Diabetes: Type I research studies for holistic treatments

The effect of fenugreek seeds (Trigonella foenum graecum) on blood glucose and the serum lipid profile was evaluated in insulin-dependent (Type I) diabetic patients. Isocaloric diets with and without fenugreek were each given randomly for 10 d. Defatted fenugreek seed powder (100 g), divided into two equal doses, was incorporated into the diet and served during lunch and dinner. The fenugreek diet significantly reduced fasting blood sugar and improved the glucose tolerance test. There was a 54 per cent reduction in 24-h urinary glucose excretion. Serum total cholesterol, LDL and VLDL cholesterol and triglycerides were also significantly reduced. The HDL cholesterol fraction, however, remained unchanged. These results indicate the usefulness of fenugreek seeds in the management of diabetes.

OBJECTIVE:
Oxidative stress plays an important role in the development of diabetic complications including metabolic abnormality-induced diabetic micro-vascular and macro-vascular complications. Urtica dioica L. (U. dioica) has been traditionally used in Iranian medicine as an herbal remedy for hypoglycemic or due to its anti-inflammatory properties. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of hydro-alcoholic extract of U. dioica on blood lipids, hepatic enzymes and nitric oxide levels in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. MATERIALS AND
METHODS:
50 women with type 2 diabetes participated in this study and were randomly divided into two groups namely, control and intervention groups. Control group received placebo and intervention group received hydro-alcoholic extract of U. dioica. Before and after 8 weeks of continuous treatment, some biochemical serum levels including FPG, TG, SGPT, SGOT, HDL, LDL, SOD and NO were measured.
Results:
The results indicated that after 8 weeks, in the intervention group, FPG, TG, and SGPT levels significantly decreased and HDL, NO and SOD levels significantly increased as compared to the control group.
Conclusion:
Our results encourage the use of hydro-alcoholic extract of U. dioica as an antioxidant agent for additional therapy of diabetes as hydro-alcoholic extract of U. dioica may decrease risk factors of cardiovascular incidence and other complications in patients with diabetes mellitus.

OBJECTIVE:
To determine whether the marked decrease in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) occasionally associated with combination fibrate-thiazolidinedione therapy results from interaction between the 2 drugs or is solely the result of fibrate administration, a previously recognized cause.
METHODS:
We prospectively followed the clinical course of 2 patients receiving fenofibrate and rosiglitazone and reviewed the relevant literature, searching PubMed for reports describing striking reductions in HDL-C associated with fibrate administration alone and in conjunction with rosiglitazone and statins. Additional references were obtained from the bibliography of each identified article.
Results:
Each of the 2 patients demonstrated a Drug Interaction Probability Score score of 9, indicating a highly probable likelihood of interaction. Critical review of all reported cases of concurrent fenofibrate-rosiglitazone-associated decreases in HDL-C failed to show conclusive evidence that the HDL-C decrease could be due to an interaction between the 2 drugs as opposed to either drug being given alone. CONCLUSIONS: In at least some patients who experience marked HDL-C decrease when given a combination of fenofibrate and rosiglitazone, this severe adverse effect is the result of a drug interaction between the 2 pharmaceutical agents and is not reproduced by the administration of either drug singly.

PURPOSE: Human islet amyloid polypeptide (hIAPP) aggregation is linked to loss of pancreatic beta cells in type 2 diabetes, in part due to oxidative stress. Currently, little is known about the effects of selenium-enriched Spirulina on beta cells with the presence of hIAPP. In this study, INS-1E rat insulinoma cells were used as a model to evaluate in vitro protective effects of Se-enriched Spirulina extract (Se-SE) against hIAPP-induced cell death, as well as the underlying mechanisms.
METHODS:
Flow cytometric analysis was used to evaluate cell apoptosis, mitochondrial membrane potential (??m) and ROS generation. Caspase activity was measured using a fluorometric method. Western blotting was applied to detect protein expression.
Results:
Our results showed that exposure of INS-1E cells to hIAPP resulted in cell viability loss, LDH release and appearance of sub-G peak. However, cytotoxicity of hIAPP was significantly attenuated by co-treatment with Se-SE. Se-SE also inhibited hIAPP-induced activation of caspase-3, -8 and -9. Additionally, hIAPP-induced accumulation of ROS and superoxide was suppressed by co-treatment with Se-SE. Moreover, Se-SE was able to prevent hIAPP-induced depletion of??m and intracellular ATP, reduction in mitochondrial mass, changes in the expression of Bcl-2 family members, release of mitochondrial apoptogenic factors. Furthermore, hIAPP-mediated AKT inhibition was restored by co-treatment with Se-SE.
Conclusion:
Our results showed that Se-SE protects INS-1E cells from hIAPP-induced cell death through preventing ROS overproduction, mitochondrial dysfunction and modulating PI3K/AKT pathway.

Abstract The overall aim of this study was to evaluate, from a global and ecological perspective, the relationships between availability of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and prevalence of type 2 diabetes. Using published resources, country-level estimates (n=43 countries) were obtained for: total sugar, HFCS and total calorie availability, obesity, two separate prevalence estimates for diabetes, prevalence estimate for impaired glucose tolerance and fasting plasma glucose. Pearson’s correlations and partial correlations were conducted in order to explore associations between dietary availability and obesity and diabetes prevalence. Diabetes prevalence was 20% higher in countries with higher availability of HFCS compared to countries with low availability, and these differences were retained or strengthened after adjusting for country-level estimates of body mass index (BMI), population and gross domestic product (adjusted diabetes prevalence=8.0 vs. 6.7%, p=0.03; fasting plasma glucose=5.34 vs. 5.22 mmol/L, p=0.03) despite similarities in obesity and total sugar and calorie availability. These results suggest that countries with higher availability of HFCS have a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes independent of obesity.

OBJECTIVETwo meta-analyses of randomized trials of statins found increased risk of type 2 diabetes. One possible explanation is bias due to differential survival when patients who are at higher risk of diabetes survive longer under statin treatment.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSWe used electronic medical records from 500 general practices in the U.K. and included data from 285,864 men and women aged 50-84 years from January 2000 to December 2010. We emulated the design and analysis of a hypothetical randomized trial of statins, estimated the observational analog of the intention-to-treat effect, and adjusted for differential survival bias using inverse-probability weighting.RESULTSDuring 1.2 million person-years of follow-up, there were 13,455 cases of type 2 diabetes and 8,932 deaths. Statin initiation was associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes. The hazard ratio (95% CI) of diabetes was 1.45 (1.39-1.50) before adjusting for potential confounders and 1.14 (1.10-1.19) after adjustment. Adjusting for differential survival did not change the estimates. Initiating atorvastatin and simvastatin was associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes.CONCLUSIONSIn this sample of the general population, statin therapy was associated with 14% increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Differential survival did not explain this increased risk.