[tt] Reveratrol & gene tweaks to increase insulin sensitivity, avoid diabetes

[Hughes, James J.]

Low doses of a red wine ingredient fight diabetes in mice
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-10/cp-ldo092607.php
Even relatively low doses of resveratrol -- a chemical found in the
skins of red grapes and in red wine -- can improve the sensitivity of
mice to the hormone insulin, according to a report in the October issue
of Cell Metabolism, a Cell Press publication. As insulin resistance is
often characterized as the most critical factor contributing to the
development of type 2 diabetes, the findings "provide a potential new
therapeutic approach for preventing or treating" both conditions, the
researchers said.


Genetic 'roadblock' hoped to inspire future type 2 diabetes research
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-10/slri-gh092807.php
A team of Mount Sinai Hospital researchers has found that a 'genetic
roadblock' identified in a recent study could pave the way toward novel
treatments for type 2 diabetes. In the study, researchers from the
Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute of Mount Sinai Hospital found the
first genetic evidence that the elimination of the gene for glycogen
synthase kinase-3 in mice sensitizes the animals to insulin.


Avoiding sweets may spell a longer life, study in worms suggests
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-10/cp-asm092607.php
A new study in the October issue of Cell Metabolism, a publication of
Cell Press, reveals that worms live to an older age when they are unable
to process the simple sugar glucose. Glucose is a primary source of
energy for the body, and can be found in all major dietary carbohydrates
as a component of starches and other forms of sugar, including sucrose
and lactose.