Researchers say circulating microRNAs could effectively predict how young people with type 2 diabetes will respond to treatment.
This is the first time that microRNAs affecting insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas have been investigated for their ability to predict the progression and onset of type 2 diabetes in young people.
The scientists say their findings “add a previously unavailable layer of understanding” and shed further light on processes that need to be understood to develop effective prevention strategies.
The study found that measuring microRNAs was nearly as effective at predicting the prognosis of patients with the disease as traditional methods of measuring blood glucose levels (A1C), also known as HbA1c.
Treatment failure was classified as an A1C greater than 8% for 6 months or when the study participant was in a position to restart insulin treatment.
Circulating microRNAs were also effective in predicting a 20% decline in beta cell function during the first 6 months of the study period.
The specific microRNAs investigated in this study play a role in insulin resistance and other processes that may stress and kill beta cells.
The number of children and adolescents being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes is increasing dramatically.
In the United States, rates are increasing rapidly, with prevalence expected to increase by 700% by 2060.
Jeannie Tryggestad, an associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine, led the 699-person study.
She said that for the first time, the number of people with type 2 diabetes among 15-19 year olds has surpassed the number of people with type 1 diabetes, adding that “type 2 diabetes in young people is very aggressive and the decline in beta cell function in young people is much greater than in adults.”
“We believe that predicting the causes of beta cell dysfunction and ultimately preventing that dysfunction is one of the keys to preventing and treating type 2 diabetes.”
“Glucose and A1C are important to me as a clinician, but as a clinician-researcher, having this additional information about microRNAs is important because it gives us clues into the mechanism. We need to understand this mechanism to be able to take preventative measures. This mechanism adds a layer of understanding that we didn't have before,” Tryggestad said.
Read the full study Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
