文摘
Aims/hypothesis Previous studies on isolated islets have demonstrated tight coupling between calcium (Ca2+) influx and oxygen consumption rate (OCR) that is correlated with insulin secretion rate (ISR). To explain these observations, we have proposed a mechanism whereby the activation of a highly energetic process (Ca2+/metabolic coupling process [CMCP]) by Ca2+ mediates the stimulation of ISR. The aim of the study was to test whether impairment of the CMCP could play a role in the development of type 2 diabetes. Methods Glucose- and Ca2+-mediated changes in OCR and ISR in isolated islets were compared with the time course of changes of plasma insulin concentrations observed during the progression to hyperglycaemia in a rat model of type-2 diabetes (the University of California at Davis type 2 diabetes mellitus [UCD-T2DM] rat). Islets were isolated from UCD-T2DM rats before, 1?week, and 3?weeks after the onset of hyperglycaemia. Results Glucose stimulation of cytosolic Ca2+ and OCR was similar for islets harvested before and 1?week after the onset of hyperglycaemia. In contrast, a loss of decrement in islet OCR and ISR in response to Ca2+ channel blockade coincided with decreased fasting plasma insulin concentrations observed in rats 3?weeks after the onset of hyperglycaemia. Conclusions/interpretation These results suggest that phenotypic impairment of diabetic islets in the UCD-T2DM rat is downstream of Ca2+ influx and involves unregulated stimulation of the CMCP. The continuously elevated levels of CMCP induced by chronic hyperglycaemia in these islets may mediate the loss of islet function.