First Author | Wen T | Year | 2009 |
Journal | Mol Endocrinol | Volume | 23 |
Issue | 5 | Pages | 671-8 |
PubMed ID | 19221053 | Mgi Jnum | J:147786 |
Mgi Id | MGI:3842221 | Doi | 10.1210/me.2008-0345 |
Citation | Wen T, et al. (2009) The MOR-1 Opioid Receptor Regulates Glucose Homeostasis by Modulating Insulin Secretion. Mol Endocrinol 23(5):671-8 |
abstractText | In addition to producing analgesia, opioids have also been proposed to regulate glucose homeostasis by altering insulin secretion. A considerable controversy exists, however, regarding the contribution of the mu-opioid receptor (MOR-1) to insulin secretion dynamics. We employed congenic C57BL/6J MOR-1 knockout (KO) mice to clarify the role of MOR in glucose homeostasis. We first found that both sexes of MOR-1 KO mice weigh more than wild-type mice throughout postnatal life and that this increase includes preferentially increased fat deposition. We also found that MOR-1 KO mice exhibit enhanced glucose tolerance that results from insulin hypersecretion that reflects increased beta-cell mass and increased secretory dynamics in the MOR-1 mutant mice compared with wild type. Analysis of the isolated islets indicated that islet insulin hypersecretion is mediated directly by MOR expressed on islet cells via a mechanism downstream of ATP-sensitive K(+) channel activation by glucose. These findings indicate that MOR-1 regulates body weight by a mechanism that involves insulin secretion and thus may represent a novel target for new diabetes therapies. |