Type II diabetes is characterised by tissue resistance to insulin and is widespread in industrialised societies. A link between obesity and type II diabetes has long been suspected but details of the mechanism were unknown. Now, a newly discovered hormone described in 18 January
Michell Lazar and colleagues from University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine found that adipocytes secrete a unique signalling protein, which they call 'resistin' (for resistance to insulin). They showed that in mice bred to have both diet-induced and hereditary diabetes the resistin levels are higher than in controls. A commonly used anti-diabetic drug (rosiglitazone) reduces the resistin levels and administering an anti-resistin antibody improves blood sugar and insulin action in mice with diet-induced obesity (
