Lipid Composition of Cell Membranes and Its Relevance in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

摘要

Identifying the causative relationship between the fatty acid composition of cell membranes and type 2 diabetesnmellitus fundamentally contributes to the understanding of the basic pathophysiological mechanisms of the disease.nImportant outcomes of the reviewed studies appear to support the hypotheses that the flexibility of a membranendetermined by the ratio of (poly)unsaturated to saturated fatty acyl chains of its phospholipids influences theneffectiveness of glucose transport by insulin-independent glucose transporters (GLUTs) and the insulin-dependentnGLUT4, and from the prediabetic stage on a shift from unsaturated towards saturated fatty acyl chains of membranenphospholipids directly induces a decrease in glucose effectiveness and insulin sensitivity. In addition, it has becomenevident that a concomitant increase in stiffness of both plasma and erythrocyte membranes may decrease thenmicrocirculatory flow, leading ultimately to tissue hypoxia, insufficient tissue nutrition, and diabetes-specificnmicrovascular pathology. As to the etiology of type 2 diabetes mellitus, a revised hypothesis that attempts tonaccommodate the reviewed findings is presented.