Type 2 Diabetes is a lifestyle disorder of an epic proportion. It
is widely speculated that US, India and China are or are going to be the worst
affected by this problem.
Current
therapies focus on various strategies to control blood sugar but there is no
cure at this stage. The older sulponylureas and metformins to the newer TZDs (thiazolidinediones),
GLP-1 analogues and even SGLT2 inhibitors are vying to capture the diabetes
market. The whole exercise is to promote medication that can control the HbA1c
to controllable levels.
Dietary
extracts containing polyphenols, L-arginine etc. have been shown to have
anti-diabetic potential. In a recent publication in the journal Endocrinology(Endocrinology
August 19, 2013 en.2013-1529), it has been shown that dietery L-arginine can
regulate glucose metabolism indirectly by inducing GLP-1 release in mice. Although
the exact mechanism has not been dissected in the paper yet the authors suggest
that G protein coupled receptor pathways might be involved.
Since
current strategies involve targeting the GLP-1 system by either inhibiting its
rapid clearance by dipeptidyl-peptidase IV or using dipeptidyl-peptidase
IV-resistant GLP-1 mimetics, it would be interesting to see development of
novel approaches like dietary supplement with L-arginine and or L-arginine
based therapies to enhance GLP-1 secretion from intestinal L cells. In essence,
this study raises the possibility that nutritional-based strategies aiming to
improve endogenous GLP-1 release may provide an alternative therapeutic
approach to treat patients with metabolic disorder
