PKCtheta is a key player in the development of insulin resistance.

Activation of PKCtheta is associated with lipid-induced insulin resistance and PKCtheta knockout mice are protected from the lipid-induced defects. However, the exact mechanism by which PKCtheta contributes to insulin resistance is not known. To investigate whether an increase in PKCtheta expression leads to insulin resistance, C2C12 skeletal muscle cells were transfected with PKCtheta DNA and treated with different concentrations of insulin for 10 min.

Endothelin-stimulated glucose uptake: effects of intracellular Ca(2+), cAMP and glucosamine.

Endothelin-1 (ET-1) is a 21-amino-acid peptide that binds to G-protein-coupled receptors to evoke biological responses. Previously we have shown that ET-1 stimulates glucose uptake in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and neonatal rat cardiomyocytes, but the mechanism is not completely understood. ET-1 is known to modulate intracellular Ca(2+) and cAMP levels.

Rapamycin partially prevents insulin resistance induced by chronic insulin treatment.

Chronic insulin exposure induces serine/threonine phosphorylation and degradation of IRS-1 through a rapamycin-sensitive pathway, which results in a down-regulation of insulin action. In this study, to investigate whether rapamycin (an mTOR inhibitor) could prevent insulin resistance induced by hyperinsulinemia, 3T3-L1 adipocytes were incubated chronically in the presence of insulin with or without the addition of rapamycin. Subsequently, the cells were washed and re-stimulated acutely with insulin.