Article Details
INSULIN RESISTANCE AND HYPERINSULINEMIA IN EXPERIMENTAL ALCOHOLISM | Original Article
ABSTRACT:
Insulin resistance, which is impaired biological response to insulin usually, connotes resistance to the effect of insulin on uptake of glucose, its metabolism or storage. Alcohol drinking, an accepted social practice in many societies, is a common substance of abuse, and high alcohol intake is thought to be a risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus. In this study, an experimental rat model of insulin resistance was developed by feeding ethanol to albino rats for consecutive 45 days. Elevated fasting blood glucose, impaired glucose tolerance and the state of insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia have been observed in these alcoholic rats. Activities of the various rate limiting enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism and insulin resistance like glucose-6-phosphatase, glycogen phosphorylase, pyruvate kinase, phosphoenol pyruvate carboxykinase, phosphofructokinase and protein tyrosine phosphatase were found altered in various tissues (viz. liver, kidney and muscle) of alcohol-fed rats compared to controls. Insulin resistance was found associated with a deficit in protein tyrosine phosphorylation in the insulin signal transduction cascade.