Glycated Insulin: A novel clinical biomarker for Type 2 diabetes, prediabetes and gestational diabetes
Michelle’s Doctoral research explored the use of glycated insulin as a biomarker for insulin resistance (as seen in diabetes and gestational diabetes).
Through the development and validation of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, Michelle documented for the first time that elevated glycated insulin was linked to poor glycaemic control (by HbA1c).
Michelle also found that glycated insulin is elevated in prediabetes and interestingly, was raised in pregnancy, not just in gestational diabetes. This important finding points to a role for glycated insulin in monitoring beta-cell expansion during pregnancy and gestational diabetes.
Supporting previous work using radioimmunoassay, Michelle found that glycated insulin is secreted from the beta cell rapidly following meals, and also a number of antidiabetic drugs. This supports the notion that glycated insulin is formed within the beta cell during the pro-insulin processing and packaging stage, prior to secretion.
Michelle through this work also looked at some of the mechanisms of action of glycated insulin in the pancreatic beta cell including the autocrine stimulation of glycated insulin (and insulin) on the pancreatic islets, and evaluation of the mechanistic pathways of action.
Supervisory Team: Prof Aine McKillop, Prof Finbar O’Harte
Collaborators: Prof Fidelma Dunne, NUI Galway, Prof Thomas Gardner and Chad Ritter, Pennsylvania State University
Project start date: September 2009
Project completed: November 2012