The incredible way the brain can regulate blood sugar

He sugar

This is important for proper functioning organismmainly, brain. To have good health, level blood glucose It should be maintained within a normal and balanced range.

It can’t be too much highbecause this could lead to diabetesbut not too much shortbecause it might cause fainting or even death.

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Belem Candia

In this sense, a constant problem is The role of the brain in regulating glucose levels. Today science shows that these levels are strictly controlled hormones secreted by the pancreas, such as insulin and glucagon.

However, some scientists have wondered whether it is possible that glucose-sensing neurons in the brain somehow regulate sugar level all over the body.

In a study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, researchers examined the role of a specific group of these neurons in maintaining its balance in the blood in animal models.

“Now we know that there are many glucose-sensing neurons in the brain, which are believed to be actively involved in detecting small changes in blood levels. glucose in the body and then call the appropriate responses to return level to healthy range

said Yong Xu, professor of pediatrics, nutrition, molecular and cellular biology and medicine at Homa Shalchi Baylor College of Medicine and lead author of the new study supporting the finding. But science has been asking several questions about this for a long time.”

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Belem Candia

“These cells in particular They can be divided into two groups depending on how they respond to fluctuations in glucose levels.. One group of them is called neuroexcitable neurons. glucose (GE) and others are neurons inhibited substance (GI). In this study, we focused on the second group, the less studied of the two,” Xu explained.

The brain is a regulatory organ

GE neurons are activated or excited when glucose level around him it is higher. “This is to be expected since this substance is the fuel for most cells, including neurons,” Xu said. “Having more fuel will promote increased cellular activity.”

But on the other hand, gastrointestinal tract neurons are inhibited when glucose level is higher and, paradoxically, they are activated when they are lower.

“This puzzled the researchers because they expected the opposite—less neuronal activity when glucose levels were low. We wanted to understand the mechanism that caused activity of gastrointestinal neurons during low glucose levels and whether it affected her blood balance,” Xu said.

In experiments on mice, the researchers focused on neurons in the gastrointestinal tract located in an area called the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH).

In particular, they studied which ion channels in Gastrointestinal Neurons Mediate Low Glucose Detection. These channels are proteins on the surface of neurons that allow charged ions to enter and leave the cell.

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“We found that an ion channel called anoctamine 4 (ano4) is required for the activation of gastrointestinal neurons in response to low glucose. Indeed, our data indicate that ano4 is a marker defining gastrointestinal neurons. If a VMH neuron expresses ano4, then it is a GI neuron. If it doesn’t express it, then it’s not true,” Xu added about this process needed to activate or excite neurons.

The researchers then examined the role of gastrointestinal neurons in regulating blood glucose levels in a mouse model of type 1 diabetes. In this case, pancreatic beta cells that produce insulin are absent. Lack of insulin causes an increase in blood sugar level, a sign of diabetes.

By genetically deleting the ano4 gene in gastrointestinal neurons located in the VMH in these diabetic mice, researchers significantly normalized blood sugar levels.

“Our results show that Glucose-sensing neurons in the brain They are important for its regulation throughout the body. We found that GI neurons perform an important function during diabeteswhen the beta cells of the pancreas do not produce insulin for control blood sugar levels– Xu said.

And he concluded: “In this case Blood glucose levels can be manipulated quite effectively in a mouse model by deleting a single gene in gastrointestinal neurons, a small group of brain cells. Next, we want to determine whether pharmacological inhibition of ano4 will help. monitor levels in this model of type 1 diabetes and in models of type 2 diabetes″.