Can we prevent beta cell apoptosis in type 2 diabetes?

Since the publication of the United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS), the progressive nature of type 2 (DM2) diabetes has been identified as the main cause of failure to maintain a long term glycemic control.[1] The need to adjust treatment as the disease progressed was recognized and algorithms for treatments in line with this concept were developed.[2] The UKPDS showed that the progressive character of the disease results from a steady reduction, of approximately 5% per year, in the ability of beta cells to secrete insulin, a process estimated to begin 10 to 12 years before diagnosis, which triggers the onset of diabetes when approximately 50% of beta cell function has been lost. [1] Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.