The Hindu : Front Page : Gene causing diabetes in youth identified

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Nov 11, 2005

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Gene causing diabetes in youth identified

M. Dinesh Varma

Variations in HNF1 alpha gene precipitate MODY, a monogenic form of the disease

CHENNAI: A group of researchers has zeroed in on a gene, which is responsible for increasing the diabetes risk among Indian youth.

The study group at the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation was led by diabetologist V. Mohan.

It found that the trans-generational Maturity-Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY) entity, which manifested at the age of 25 or below, was precipitated by variations in what has been identified as the Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor-1 alpha or the HNF1 alpha gene.

Six subtypes

MODY is a monogenic form of diabetes characterised by a mutated HNF1alpha gene.

Of the six subtypes, researchers focussed on the most commonly prevalent MODY 3.

The findings of the study, which examined the prevalence of polymorphism (gene variation) in five groups of diabetic patients, including MODY patients and a control group of glucose-tolerant patients, were published in the October issue of the international diabetes journal, Diabetes Care.

The researchers, who compared the age of onset for type 2 patients with the associated genotype, found that the mean age of diabetes susceptibility was earliest in the homozygote aminoacid Valine (Val/Val) genotype.

It could trigger the condition in the mean age of 24.8 years — around 11 years earlier than the mean age of 35.7 years associated with the Ala/Ala (Alanine amino acid) genotype.

The mean age of onset of diabetes associated with a third important heterozygote, amino acid genotype Ala/Val, was 29.9 years.

Specific genetic marker

"The study found that as a specific genetic marker for MODY, the Ala/Val polymorphism did not help much in distinguishing MODY entity from early-onset type 2 diabetes," Dr. Mohan said.

The researchers called for further studies on the functional significance of this gene variant.

The research team included Shekher Anuradha, Venkatesan Radha and Deepa Raj.

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