Biology on Diabetes - Essay Example

? Diabetes By (Module and number) Diabetes Diabetes is then said to be the consequence of having low levelsof insulin in the body because of various factors that prevent the normal functioning of insulin. Once it happens, hyperglycemia occur which is the rise in glucose in the blood. Other significant problems in metabolism then arise when the insulin is kept low for long periods of time (Watkins 2003, p. 1). The excess sugar stored in the body then causes a significant stress to the body especially to the pancreas that cuts off the insulin needed by the body. Solutions were found through series of studies and experiments as scientists try to uncover the whole existence of diabetes starting off from its onset. They found out that oxidative stress exist that further push the condition of diabetes and leads to the onset of complications. According to Hsieh et. al. (2005 quoted in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 15), various organs like the kidney and liver showed some lowered levels of mtDNA 8-OHdG when the rats were treated with rice bran oil. It showed that the oil may have certain properties that would be helpful to diabetics. Another study coming from Molnar et al. (n.d. as cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 15) suggested that circulatory system illness and diabetes can be caused by angiotensin-converting enzyme gene insertion and deletion polymorphism. Those who have allele D may experience a heightened oxidative stress. It then leads to the injury of endothelium. Oxidative stress is then detected by the presence of albuminuria. Albuminaria may have some linkage with type 2 diabetes as what was investigated by Molnar et al. (n.d. cited in Morhan et. al. n.d.). With the significant level of fructosamine in the blood, they need insulin and more medicines for combating hypertension than people with the genotype II. Fructosamin is then the substance resulting from the joining of fruit sugar and amine through chemical reaction and releasing water in the process. That substance is used as a detector of the blood sugar level and identify whether an individual has the tendency to have diabetes or not (Lavin 2009, p. 697). It was then proven by the study that patients with allele D have bad metabolic activity and exhibit cell damage development due to oxidative stress. The connection then between the treatment method and the genotype and hypertension treatment had small significance (Morhan et al. n.d., p. 16). Hypertension is then the drastic increase in the blood pressure that passes through the blood vessels and result to tearing of the walls of the vessels. Its complications are heart attack, kidney failure and stroke (Cohen 2004, p. 9). The amount of fructosamin in the bodies of the patients was then affected by inhibitors as its presence reduced the amount while its absence allowed the prevalence of beyond the normal level of fructosamin seen in the body. The study concluded with the patients having resistance to taken insulin led to a degrading state of metabolism that resulted to oxidative stress (Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 16). The study showed how certain genes affect the condition of diabetics. Going on with the oxidative stress, it becomes a complication of diabetes once superoxide has been made in excess through the existence of hyperglycaemia. It happens in detail as such overproduction of superoxide leads to higher levels of nitric oxide creating strong oxidants that hastens the appearance of complications from diabetes. The same method also causes damages to the inner linings of the blood vessels for diabetic patients (Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 17). Hyperglycemia then is the condition of having high concentration of glucose in the blood as a result of not having much insulin in the body to regulate the blood sugar levels. It may progress slowly or may come out abruptly that may pose serious complications. When it goes out of control, it has the ability to dehydrate the person and experience severe chemical imbalance in his body. It is then usually related to diabetes as it affects the arteries and veins and nerves also (Keane and Chace 1999, p. 183). Hyperglycemia occurs when the person eats too much of everything and does not spend time in exercising even just a little jogging. Other physical stresses like illness and infection can also trigger the existence of hyperglycemia. Stress is then not limited to physical but also emotional and psychological of origin (Metheny 2012, p. 174). Some of the symptoms of having hyperglycemia include dry skin, frequent hunger, and unusual frequency of urination, exaggerated thirst and even nausea (Ellsworth 2000, p. 11). Too much substance with reactive oxygen components contains the free radicals responsible for oxidative stress. Clinical management then was not able to take charge of the oxidative stress and control it even though it is the one responsible for glucose balance. It was also found out that insulin once administered according to procedure has the capacity to terminate the existence of complications diabetics who need regular dose of insulin (Group 1993 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 18). A study was done regarding the effects of controlling the glucose level in the blood when it comes to the occurrence of diabetes complication. The intensive therapy was conducted by providing more than three times a day of insulin delivery to the patients and compared with the traditional method which only delivers insulin once or twice a day. The patients were then observed through a follow-up for six and a half years (Diabetes Control and Complications Trial Research Group et. al. n.d. cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 18). It was then found out that the intensive therapy was able to slow down all forms of complications for patients with diabetes mellitus. The existence of intensive insulin therapy was then recommended by the American Diabetes Association in 1976 as it made efforts to prevent the damages that may result from diabetes. Complications that affect the nerves and the blood vessels will come out once the blood sugar levels are not controlled. In particular, the therapy includes blood glucose tests to monitor the sugar in the body. More frequent insulin delivery was also done to make sure that the level of blood sugar does not go up, but the practice has the risk of inducing hypoglycaemia to the patient (Teuscher 2007, p. 8). Hypoglycemia is the opposite of hyperglycemia wherein the patient has low blood sugar level. Its symptoms include moist skin, weakness, involuntary jerking, and no capacity for deep concentration, quick breathing and dizziness (Ellsworth 2000, p. 11). Many processes done physiologically are said to be part of the onset of oxidative stress and stages in the existence of a disease. The imbalance in the reactive oxygen production leads to further oxidative stress (Zhang et. al. 2003 and Voziyan and Hudson 2005 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 19). In the way disease occur shows how hydrogen peroxide is an important contributor to the onset of complications from diabetes. Another substance was also seen to be playing a crucial role in the inflammation of the blood vessels as complication of diabetes and that substance is called myeloperoxidase which is a protein that comes from white blood cells. It was then connected with the existence of hydrogen peroxide or else vascular injury is nonexistent. Myeloperoxidase consumes the hydrogen peroxide to introduce the injury on blood vessels (Zhang et. al. 2003 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 19). Myeloperoxidase is said to be the hemoprotein seen in macrophages and its role is to hasten the chemical reaction between hydrogen peroxide and chloride to come up with a products known as hypochlorite. Myeloperoxidase is also known as an enzyme found in leukocytes (Miyata 2011, p. 40). It is also important to check on the functional side of oxidative stress as learning it might help in combating its existence and even help in the prevention of serious damages caused by diabetes mellitus. It was then found out in younger people that increased oxidant stress was detected among them who have diabetes. The condition of prevailing hyperglycemia then caters the build-up of free radicals from the interaction of oxygen in the glucose molecules. The study wanted to confirm whether damages occur from the free radicals during the first detection of diabetes clinically and at the later stages (Dominguez et. al. 1998 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 20). Hyperglycemia then has a strong connection with oxidative stress. Its existence produces many diabetes complications because of the free radicals and those complications are damages to nerves, blood vessels and other organs. It was then tested in a study where oxidation of proteins and the antioxidants present in the immune system were measured. The study found out that superoxide is at high levels for children with diabetes mellitus using chemiluminescent assay as it shows some degree of light as compared to the samples from the healthy counterparts. Type 1 diabetes mellitus was confirmed to inflict oxidative stress among children with that illness since even the plasma vitamin A were detected to be higher in diabetic children than the healthy ones. It also pointed out how the control over glucose levels is an essential practice to prevent the onset of complications especially for diabetic children (Hsu et. al. 2006 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 22). Once diabetes went out of control, complications will emerge from oxidative blood vessel damages to neurological damages and even Alzheimer’s disease. Blood vessel damage is not the only complication that can be done by diabetes to the circulatory system as it can affect the heart later on developing coronary heart disease and hypertension due to free radicals (Haidara et. al. 2006 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d.). A follow-up study was then conducted among participants of the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial regarding the intensive therapy and its effects on neuropathy. The conclusion of the past study advised the participants to use the intensive therapy for diabetics. With that, the onset of neuropathy was analyzed using the instrument called Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument by looking at the probable devastating effects of that diabetes complication. The results of the follow-up study supported the results found in the earlier study. The group that underwent the intensive therapy first had lower risk of neuropathy compared to the counterpart although both groups had the same glycaemia control (Haidara et. al. 2006 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d.). Neuropathy is then one of the complications of diabetes. Once it is caused by diabetes, that condition is called diabetic neuropathy or DNP. It is caused by the two types of diabetes and affects the lives of about 30 percent of diabetics in America. In particular, 21 million Americans suffer from DNP. Despite of the efforts to control the glucose in the blood, it appears to be no effect to the development of DNP. It then affects the hands and feet usually. Also pain is said to be evident on that condition as stinging sensation occurs that later impairs the limb reflexes (Maletic et. al. 2012, p. 43). The loss of reflex is attributed to the degradation of the nerve fibres. It must then be managed early on as there are several reasons for it like other forms of neuropathies may coincide with DNP. Also some patients do not feel any pain or symptoms of the damage that leads to impairment of sensation on their limbs. The life of the patients is well-affected by NDP as it requires lifestyle change. Once neuropathy affects the autonomic nervous system, it is almost always fatal. For early detection, treatments are present (Boulton and Vileikyt 2011, p. 1). Despite of the therapy, insulin resistance then may occur once the cells do not recognize the insulin for its stimulating effect. Several studies and researches had seen that many tissues in the body are affected by hyperglycemia and oxidative stress. Despite of those studies, the stress caused by the free radical as sparked by diabetes is still a subject to further experiments and follow-up studies. Although it is still under investigation, it was already proven that oxidative stress already makes its disruption in the nerves before the symptoms come out like pain and undesirable sensations. Oxidative stress then negatively affects the insulin production in pancreas resulting to blood sugar reduction. The disruption in the insulin production is done by the stress via changes in the pathway towards production. It was then found out that complications happen once the glucose level goes beyond the threshold. Once it is beyond the tolerable amount, it interacts with fatty acids to hasten the presence of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. Once the stress is on the rise, direct damages occur to the macromolecules later on (Evans et. al. 2003 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 94). The blockage in releasing insulin is done by increase in fatty acid and glucose. It was then proven that when both were induced, complications happen and insulin is not produced and distributed (Evans et Al. 2003 cited in Morhan et. al. n.d., p. 95). Glucose and fats can become present in excess in the body as results to various factors. Gaining too much weight is a primary cause followed by sedentary lifestyle and too much hormones in the body. Those give rise to oxidative stress that disrupts the normal activity of insulin. Recent studies point out that the stress induced in the pathways of insulin production pertaining to various protein kinases are the ones responsible for the delayed onset of the complication of diabetes. (Evans et. al. 2002 as cited in Morhan et Al. n.d., p. 95). The overall findings coming from the studies presented and cited boil down into one hypothesis that the pathways affected by the protein kinases that blocked the activity of insulin damage the organs and cause oxidative stress that delay the onset of the complications of diabetes (Evans et. Al. 2002 as cited in Morhan et. Al. n.d., p. 96). Hyperglycaemia causes damages to the small blood vessels in the part of the eyes called retina. That condition is called diabetic retinopathy which is one of the complications of diabetes. It was found out that its occurrence in South India is lower than their Western counterparts. Despite of that statistics, many cases of diabetes were recorded in India and retinopathy may become a public threat. In the study conducted on two diabetic patients with retinopathy, hypertension was not a major consideration. The focus of the study went on the effects of genetics, oxidative stress and atherosclerosis to the proneness of diabetics to retinopathy. The damages then from retinal endothelium were lessened by the action of the component of turmeric known as curcumin. The treatment then was followed by laser to ensure the vision capacity to be saved and prevent its degradation. It is then advised to have yearly check-ups especially for the condition of the retina to lessen the cases of blindness among diabetics (Rema and Pradeepa 2006, p. 297). Bibliography Bender, A. (1997) Introduction to nutrition and metabolism. USA, Taylor and Francis. Boulton, A. and Vileikyte, L. (2011) Painful diabetic neuropathy in clinical practice. London, Springer-Verlag. Chong, Z. and Maiese, K. (n.d.) Oxidative stress and diabetes. Thesis Report, Wayne State University School of Medicine. Cohen, J. (2004) The magnesium solution for high blood pressure: how to use magnesium to help prevent and relieve hypertension naturally. USA: Square One. Ellsworth, R. (2000) Natural treatments for diabetes. USA, Woodland Publishing. Keane, M. and Chace, D. (1999) What to eat if you have diabetes: a guide to adding nutritional therapy to your treatment plan. USA, Contemporary Books. Lavin, N. (2009) Manual of endocrinology and metabolism. USA: Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins. Maletic, V. and Jain, R. and Raison, C. (2011) 100 questions and answers about chronic pain. USA, Jones and Bartlett. Metheny, N. (2012) Fluid and electrolyte balance: nursing considerations. USA, Jones and Bartlett. Miyata, T. (2011) Studies on renal disorders. USA, Springer Science Business Media. Rema, M. and Pradeepa, R. (2007) Diabetic retinopathy: an Indian perspective. Indian Journal of Medical Research, 125 (1) March, pp. 297-310. Teuscher, A. (2007) Insulin: a voice for choice. Switzerland, S. Karger. Watkins, P. (2003) ABC of diabetes. London, BMJ Publishing Group. Read More