Choice enhances performance in non-insulin dependent diabetics and controls

Article Abstract:

About 10 percent of those over age 60 suffer from non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), a chronic illness in which the ability of naturally produced insulin to facilitate metabolism of blood sugar is diminished. Treatment includes diet modification and sometimes supplemental insulin, taken either orally or by injection. Neuropsychological testing of NIDDM patients has shown that their cognitive performance tends to be poorer than the performance of age-matched controls. These memory problems have been attributed to several biochemical factors (e.g., elevated triglyceride and hemoglobin levels), but in many instances it seems that the effects were really secondary to depression. Increased susceptibility to background interference and to long-term memory impairment in NIDDM patients was not explained by depression, however. While susceptibility to interference by background stimuli generally increases as we age, it was hypothesized in the present study that the presence of NIDDM would increase susceptibility to interference further. To test this, 212 subjects between the ages of 55 and 74 years were studied. Of the sample, 183 individuals had NIDDM, and 29 formed a comparison group. Subjects learned target words, half of which they chose and half of which they were assigned, which were presented along with one or two background words to act as interference. The effects of interference appeared to be greater for NIDDM patients on target word recognition than for age-matched subjects in the comparison group, possibly as a result of processing resources being more uniformly applied to both target and interference words in the former group. Choosing target words improved recognition performance in both groups, but NIDDM patients still had more difficulty eliminating interference. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Psychological aspects, Physiological aspects, Type 2 diabetes, Memory

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Nonenzymatic glycosylation, the Maillard reaction and the aging process

Article Abstract:

The Maillard reaction was first observed by Louis Camille Maillard in 1912 and its discovery has had a large impact on geology and agronomy, as well as medicine. A review of the implications of the Maillard reaction in biological processes, and in particular, the aging process, is presented. The Maillard reaction involves the reaction of reducing sugars with amino acids, which leads to the formation of carbon dioxide and the development of a characteristic yellow-brown color. This reaction has been used to explain the increased loss of amino acids through the urine in diabetes. The basic chemistry involved in the Maillard reaction is discussed. The molecular and biological functions that are altered by the Maillard reaction have also been used to explain changes that occur as a part of the aging process. Although a specific Maillard reaction theory of aging has not yet been established, the Maillard reaction may be used to explain some types of molecular damage which are discussed. A relationship between the Maillard reaction and glycemia (sugar in the blood) has been made. The fact that free amino groups are the main targets of the Maillard reaction and are also central to protein function is supportive of the role of this reaction in this process. Further carbohydrate research, including close examination of modifications of proteins and DNA, will better define the role of the Maillard reaction in the aging process. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Health aspects, Aging, Molecular biology, Carbohydrate metabolism

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Nonenzymatic glycosylation of protein does not increase with age in normal human lenses

Article Abstract:

It has long been thought that a metabolic process called nonenzymatic (i.e. not caused by enzymes) glycosylation or glycation, associated with aging, was responsible for the cataracts seen with aging or in diabetics. Diabetes, in turn, has been described as a disease of accelerated aging because so much of the pathology (disease) or complications associated with it are similar to those seen with advancing age. Glycation involves a reaction between glucose (sugar) and certain residues in protein. Some researchers say that there are continuous age-related increases in glycation in some of the longer-lived proteins in the body; others say that glycation can be reversed. These authors suggest that the increases and reversals in glycation should reach an equilibrium at some point and so under the best of conditions, age-related increases in glycation should be minimal. To test that hypothesis, the relationship between age and the extent of glycation in the lens of the eye was studied, and it was found that there is, indeed, equilibrium under certain conditions. Moreover, the increases in glycation of protein in diabetes are related to the amount of glucose in the blood (glycemia), and improving diabetic control may have long-term beneficial effects in slowing the development of complications. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Research, Abnormalities, Demographic aspects, Glycoproteins, Eye diseases, Diabetes research

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