Amino acid's increase suspected in diabetes

Elevated levels of an amino acid, tyrosine, alter development and longevity in animals and may contribute to the development of diabetes in people, new research from the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio indicates.

Tyrosine is increased in the blood of people who are obese or diabetic, said study senior author Alfred Fisher, M.D., Ph.D., of the Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies at the UT Health Science Center. Among people who are obese, those at the highest risk of developing diabetes tend to have higher tyrosine levels. "It was unknown whether this was simply a marker of diabetes risk or could be playing a direct role in the disease," Dr. Fisher said. "Our work suggests that tyrosine has a direct effect."

Read more:
Amino acid's increase suspected in diabetes

Source: Science Daily
Image credits: UT Health Science Center at San Antonio

______________________________________________________________

Follow Art and Science of Laboratory Medicine on


_____________________________________________________________