Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is one of the most common metabolic disorders caused by a combination of two primary factors: defective insulin secretion by pancreatic beta-cells and the inability of insulin-sensitive tissues to respond appropriately to insulin. Interestingly, the prevalence of T2D is increasing in both genders, but males are usually diagnosed at a younger age and lower body fat mass than females. Globally, there are around 17.7 million more males than females with T2D. But why such as a discrepancy between the two genders? Well, researchers from Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm recently demonstrated that abdominal fat in obese males with T2D had a higher insulin resistance compared to those seen in females. Researchers discovered that the higher levels of insulin resistance in males were attributed by less efficient inhibition of fat cell lipolysis, the process of metabolising fat. Thereby, promoting widespread of local inflammation and insulin resistance. An interesting fact from the study highlighted that adipose tissue of females with obesity exhibited 10 times higher insulin sensitivity than males and fat cells taken from males with obesity exhibited twice the rate of lipolysis compared to females. What does this mean? Well, it means females often have a higher BMI than males at the time of diagnosis and this is the time when they exhibit similar insulin resistance to the males, meaning they usually suffer the effects of obesity much later than males. Moreover, males are also at greater risk of developing complications secondary to T2D, irrespective of diabetes duration. This highlights the urgent needs to continue diabetic monitoring and to develop strategies to lower the burden of the disease in different genders.
References
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