Insulin and Glucagon

Matthew J Brady, Parke‐Davis Pharmaceutical Research, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Alan R Saltiel, Parke‐Davis Pharmaceutical Research, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

Published online: April 2001

DOI: 10.1038/npg.els.0000638

Insulin and glucagon are reciprocal hormones which regulate plasma glucose concentrations. Together, these hormones maintain blood glucose in a narrow range, despite wide variances in glucose production and utilization by the body.

Keywords: glucose metabolism; signal transduction; diabetes

Figure 1. Molecular mechanism of glucose-induced insulin secretion from cells. ATP, adenosine triphosphate; GluT, glucose transporter; VSCC, voltage-sensitive calcium channel. X indicates that the potassium channel is closed. See text for further details.
Figure 2. Insulin signal transduction pathways. P, tyrosine phosphorylated residues; GSK-3, glycogen synthase kinase-3; PP1, protein phosphatase type 1; GluT, glucose transporter; PI3¢-K, phosphatidylinositol 3¢-kinase catalytic subunit; p85, PI3¢-K regulatory subunit; PKB, protein kinase B; IRS, insulin receptor substrate; MAPK, mitogen-activated protein kinase. Defined signalling pathways are shown in solid lines, proposed pathways by dashed lines.
Figure 3. Aetiology of the development of type II diabetes.
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 References
    O’Brien RM and Granner DK (1996) Regulation of gene expression by insulin. Physiological Reviews 76: 1110–1161.
    Peraldi P and Spiegelman B (1998) TNF- and insulin resistance: summary and future prospects. Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry 182: 169–175.
    Polonsky KS, Sturis J and Van Cauter E (1998) Temporal profiles and clinical significance of pulsatile insulin secretion. Hormone Research 49: 178–184.
    Rea S and James DE (1997) The biogenesis and trafficking of GluT-4 storage vesicles. Diabetes 46: 1667–1677.
    Saltiel AR (1996) Diverse signaling pathways in the cellular actions of insulin. American Journal of Physiology 270: E375–E385.
    Saltiel AR and Olefsky JM (1996) Thiazolidinediones in the treatment of insulin resistance and type II diabetes. Diabetes 45: 1661–1669.
    Schranz DB and Lernmark Å (1998) Immunology in diabetes: an update. Diabetes/Metabolism Reviews 14: 3–29.
 Further Reading
    DeFronzo RA (1997) Pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes: metabolic and molecular implications for identifying diabetes genes. Diabetes Reviews 5: 177–269.
    book Jeffers JD, Macrow A, LaBarbera M and Armstrong T (1978) "Metabolism". In: White A, Handler P, Smith EL, Hill RL and Lehman IR (eds) Principles of Biochemistry, pp. 266–901. New York: McGraw-Hill.
    Saltiel AR (1998) Cellular mechanisms of signal transduction for growth factors. Advances in Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology 2: 83–97.

Related Sub-Topics:

Signal Transduction | Other Biomolecules: Structure, Function, Metabolism | Enzymes: Structure and Action Mechanism
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Article Title: Insulin and Glucagon
 
How to Cite close
Brady, Matthew J, and Saltiel, Alan R(Apr 2001) Insulin and Glucagon. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1038/npg.els.0000638]