Harvard Researchers Identify Diabetes Gene

In a study related to the Diabetes Genome Anatomy Project, researchers at Harvard Medical School announced that they have used gene-chip technology to identify a gene that appears to be linked to type 2 diabetes.

The gene has been dubbed “ARNT” by researchers. In studies of mice, subjects that did not possess the ARNT gene developed hyperglycemia and diabetic symptoms, while mice with the gene did not.

“This breathtaking basic science should permit us a better understanding of the development of diabetes, and hopefully allow new therapeutic tools to manage diabetes more effectively,” said Victor Roberts, clinical professor of medicine at the University of Florida and member of the National Board of Directors of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists.

Results of the Harvard study were presented this week at AACE’s annual meeting.

(via United Press International)