Postprandial Plasma Glucagon Kinetics in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Comparison of Immunoassay and Mass Spectrometry.

Context: Accurate glucagon level measurements are necessary for investigation of mechanisms for postprandial hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes.

Objective: To evaluate the accuracy of postprandial glucagon level measurements using a sandwich ELISA vs a recently established liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) method in type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Design And Participants: Twenty patients with type 2 diabetes treated with insulin underwent a meal test before and after administration of the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor anagliptin for 4 weeks.

One year follow-up after a randomized controlled trial of a 130 g/day low-carbohydrate diet in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and poor glycemic control.

Background & Aims: Recently, we conducted a prospective randomized controlled trial (RCT) showing that a 6-month 130g/day low-carbohydrate diet (LCD) reduced HbA1c and BMI more than a calorie restricted diet (CRD). [1] To assess whether the benefits of the LCD persisted after the intensive intervention, we compared HbA1c and BMI between the LCD and CRD groups at 1 year after the end of the 6-month RCT.

Methods: Following the end of the 6-month RCT, patients were allowed to manage their own diets with periodic outpatient visits.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE EFFECTIVENESS OF INORGANIC IODINE AND THE SEVERITY OF GRAVES THYROTOXICOSIS: A RETROSPECTIVE STUDY.

Objective: Inorganic iodine is often used to treat patients with Graves thyrotoxicosis who do not tolerate thionamides due to adverse effects. However, predictors of continued inorganic iodine efficacy have not been fully elucidated. This study aimed to investigate the factors affecting the continued efficacy of potassium iodide (KI) in patients with Graves thyrotoxicosis.

Safety and efficacy of metformin up-titration in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus treated with vildagliptin and low-dose metformin.

Background: This study investigated the safety and efficacy of metformin up-titration in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus treated with vildagliptin (100 mg/day) and low-dose metformin (500 or 750 mg/day).

Research Design And Methods: Fifty patients were randomly allocated to the control group (maintaining the initial low-dose of metformin) and the dose increase group (up-titrating of metformin to 1,500-2,250 mg/day) for 24 weeks. The primary outcome was change in HbA1c from baseline to 24 weeks.

Normal pancreatic β-cell function in mice with RIP-Cre-mediated inactivation of p62/SQSTM1.

Recent studies have suggested that decreased pancreatic β-cell function and mass are common features of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Pancreatic β-cell homeostasis is regulated by various types of signaling molecules and stress responses. Sequestosome 1/p62 (SQSTM1, hereafter referred to as p62) is a ubiquitin-binding adaptor protein involved in cell signaling, oxidative stress, and autophagy.

Probiotic reduces bacterial translocation in type 2 diabetes mellitus: A randomised controlled study.

Gut bacterial translocation to the blood may play an important role in the development of insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes. Here, we performed an interventional randomised control study to investigate whether probiotics could reduce bacterial translocation and cause changes in the gut microbiota. Seventy Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes were randomised to two groups: the probiotic group drank Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota-fermented milk, while the control group ingested no probiotics.

Comparison of the therapeutic effects of prednisolone and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in patients with subacute thyroiditis.

Subacute thyroiditis is a transient inflammatory thyroid disease of unknown etiology. The primary goal for treatment is to mitigate inflammation. The aim of this retrospective study was to compare the therapeutic effects of prednisolone and nonsteroidal anti-inflammation drugs in patients with subacute thyroiditis.

A randomized controlled trial of 130 g/day low-carbohydrate diet in type 2 diabetes with poor glycemic control.

Background & Aims: The usefulness of low-carbohydrate diet (LCD) for Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has not been fully investigated. Therefore, we compared the effectiveness and safety of LCD with calorie restricted diet (CRD).

Methods: This prospective, randomized, open-label, comparative study included 66 T2DM patients with HbA1c >7.

Evanescent Hyperechoic Changes After Fine-Needle Aspiration Biopsy of the Thyroid in a Series With a Low Overall Prevalence of Complications.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the frequency of and risk factors for fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB)-related complications in Japanese patients with thyroid nodules evaluated by standard FNAB techniques.

Methods: Six hundred fifty-three consecutive Japanese patients with 742 nodules who had undergone FNAB were enrolled. Nodule characteristics were evaluated, and thyroid volumes were measured.

Effect of treatment guidance using a retrospective continuous glucose monitoring system on glycaemic control in outpatients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: To assess the effect of treatment guidance based on data from a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) device on glycaemic control, and patient satisfaction, in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods: Patients with poorly-controlled T2DM treated with insulin were randomly assigned to the intervention or nonintervention group. Continuous blood-glucose levels were recorded for 4-5 days using a CGM device on three separate occasions during the 8-month study period.

Cutoff value of thyroid uptake of (99m)Tc-pertechnetate to discriminate between Graves' disease and painless thyroiditis: a single center retrospective study.

Thyroid uptake of (99m)Tc-pertechnetate is a useful way to determine the cause of thyrotoxicosis. In daily clinical practice, (99m)Tc-pertechnetate uptake is used to discriminate between Graves' disease and painless thyroiditis when clinical information is not enough to make the distinction. However, since the optimal cutoff value of (99m)Tc-pertechnetate uptake has not yet been elucidated, our aim was to determine this value.

Comparison of sitagliptin with nateglinide on postprandial glucose and related hormones in drug-naïve Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A pilot study.

Aims/introduction: Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors and glinides are effective in reducing postprandial hyperglycemia. However, little information is available on the comparative effects of the two drugs on the levels of postprandial glucose. The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of sitagliptin and nateglinide on meal tolerance tests in drug-naïve patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Relationship between olfactory dysfunction and cognitive impairment in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Aims: Recent clinical studies identified the relation between olfactory dysfunction and cognitive impairment in the elderly without type 2 diabetes mellitus. The aim of the present study was to define the relation between olfactory function and cognition in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Methods: The study participants comprised 250 elderly (age, 68-77, median 72) Japanese outpatient with type 2 diabetes mellitus free of clinically-evident cognitive impairment.

Characteristics of patients with graves disease and intrathyroid hypovascularity compared to painless thyroiditis.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the frequency and sonographic and laboratory characteristics of Graves disease with intrathyroid hypovascularity in Japanese patients and to compare these characteristics in patients with painless thyroiditis.

Methods: A total of 194 consecutive patients with Graves disease and 21 patients with painless thyroiditis were enrolled. The patients underwent thyroid volume measurement, mean superior thyroid artery peak systolic velocity (PSV) measurement, power Doppler sonography, and proper blood testing to discriminate between Graves disease and painless thyroiditis.

Increased expression of ERp57/GRP58 is protective against pancreatic beta cell death caused by autophagic failure.

Autophagy is a tightly regulated self-digestion system. As in other cell types, autophagy plays an essential role in the homeostasis of pancreatic beta cells. However, the mechanisms involved in the deterioration of beta cell function caused by autophagic failure have not yet been fully elucidated.

Prevalence of amiodarone-induced thyrotoxicosis and associated risk factors in Japanese patients.

Amiodarone is a widely used agent for life-threatening arrhythmias. Although amiodarone-induced thyrotoxicosis (AIT) is a major adverse effect that can cause recurrence of arrhythmias and exacerbation of heart failure, risk factors for AIT among amiodarone-treated Japanese patients have not been elucidated. Here, we investigated the prevalence and predictive factors for AIT.

Human IAPP-induced pancreatic β cell toxicity and its regulation by autophagy.

Pancreatic islets in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are characterized by loss of β cells and formation of amyloid deposits derived from islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP). Here we demonstrated that treatment of INS-1 cells with human IAPP (hIAPP) enhances cell death, inhibits cytoproliferation, and increases autophagosome formation. Furthermore, inhibition of autophagy increased the vulnerability of β cells to the cytotoxic effects of hIAPP.

Gut dysbiosis and detection of "live gut bacteria" in blood of Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes.

Objective: Mounting evidence indicates that the gut microbiota are an important modifier of obesity and diabetes. However, so far there is no information on gut microbiota and "live gut bacteria" in the systemic circulation of Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes.

Research Design And Methods: Using a sensitive reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) method, we determined the composition of fecal gut microbiota in 50 Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes and 50 control subjects, and its association with various clinical parameters, including inflammatory markers.

Therapeutic effectiveness of potassium iodine in drug-naïve patients with Graves' disease: a single-center experience.

Iodine is beneficial against Graves' thyrotoxicosis, though its effects are short-lived. However, its long-term effectiveness as an initial therapy has not been fully elucidated. Here, we compared the effects of potassium iodine (KI) and methimazole (MMI) in Graves' thyrotoxicosis and on thyrotropin receptor antibody (TRAb) levels.

Exendin-4 improves β-cell function in autophagy-deficient β-cells.

Autophagy is cellular machinery for maintenance of β-cell function and mass. The implication of autophagy failure in β-cells on the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes and its relation to the effect of treatment of diabetes remains elusive. Here, we found increased expression of p62 in islets of db/db mice and patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Beneficial effects of vildagliptin combined with miglitol on glucose tolerance and islet morphology in diet-controlled db/db mice.

Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors improve glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes primarily by increasing plasma active glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) levels. While various combination therapies based on DPP-4 inhibitors have been proposed for treatment of type 2 diabetes, the effects of combination therapy of DPP-4 inhibitors and alpha-glucosidase inhibitors on β-cell function are less characterized. We evaluated the effects of long-term treatment with vildagliptin, a DPP-4 inhibitor, on metabolic parameters and β-cell function, in combination with miglitol, an alpha-glucosidase inhibitor, in diet-controlled db/db mice.

Comparison of effects of cilnidipine and azelnidipine on blood pressure, heart rate and albuminuria in type 2 diabetics with hypertension: A pilot study.

Previous studies reported that both cilnidipine and azelnidipine have a renoprotective effect compared with amlodipine. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of cilnidipine and azelnidipine on blood pressure, heart rate and albuminuria. An open-label prospective crossover trial was carried out.

Comparison of effects of azelnidipine and trichlormethiazide in combination with olmesartan on blood pressure and metabolic parameters in hypertensive type 2 diabetic patients.

Unlabelled: Aims/Introduction:  Angiotensin II type 1 receptor blockers (ARB) are regarded as first-line treatment for type 2 diabetes with hypertension. However, lowering blood pressure to the target level often requires more than one antihypertensive agent as recommended by the guideline. In this open-label, prospective, crossover clinical trial, we compared the effects of combination treatment of ARB with a calcium channel blocker (CCB) or with a low-dose thiazide diuretic on blood pressure (BP) and various metabolic parameters in hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes.

Masked hypertension, endothelial dysfunction, and arterial stiffness in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a pilot study.

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between masked hypertension (MHT) and vascular damage in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Methods: The study subjects were patients with type 2 diabetes who were normotensive based on blood pressure (BP) measurement in the clinic (n = 80) without antihypertensive drugs and free of retinopathy, macroalbuminuria, overt cardiovascular disease. Subjects underwent 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM), measurement of flow-mediated dilatation (FMD), and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV).

Exendin-4, a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist, reduces intimal thickening after vascular injury.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 is a hormone secreted by L cells of the small intestine and stimulates glucose-dependent insulin response. Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists such as exendin-4 are currently used in type 2 diabetes, and considered to have beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system. To further elucidate the effect of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists on cardiovascular diseases, we investigated the effects of exendin-4 on intimal thickening after endothelial injury.