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Learning more about how CF diabetes develops
The researchers looked at the levels of chemicals called microRNAs in the blood of people with CF to understand more about CF diabetes. They found the chemicals could be used as a marker for the development of CF diabetes, adding new knowledge to existing tests. Their research also improved our understanding of the underlying cause of CF diabetes.
According to UK CF Registry data, around 27% of adults with CF – that’s more than one in four – are receiving treatment for CF diabetes. CF diabetes is a distinct form of diabetes, that has similarities to more common Type 1 and Type 2 forms of diabetes. The cause of CF diabetes on a cellular level is unknown.
Researchers based at Lund University in Sweden, led by Professor Lena Eliasson, studied the levels of different genetic markers called microRNAs present in the blood, to see if they could be used in the future for diagnosing and monitoring CF diabetes. They measured the levels of microRNAs as people with CF completed a test known as an ‘oral glucose tolerance test’.
MicroRNAs are really small molecules that can fine tune the production of proteins in the body. They can act in different parts of the body, for example in the liver or in the pancreas and they are also found in the blood. There are lots of them, so the researchers needed to find out the best ones to look at in CF diabetes.
The Oral Glucose Tolerance Test, or OGTT for short, is used to check for and monitor CF diabetes. It measures how well the body can regulate the presence of additional glucose in the blood over time. After an overnight fast, people doing the test have a very sugary drink and blood samples are taken regularly for several hours. Depending on their glucose levels, people are said to be in one of four groups ranging from ‘normal’ glucose tolerance in one group to having CF diabetes in the fourth group.
The researchers looked at which microRNAs were in the blood of people with CF, then looked at how many of these changed in people who had different responses to glucose during an OGTT.
“We found one microRNA that could act as a biomarker on cardiometabolic disease in earlier research. So it was natural for us to investigate biomarkers in CF diabetes too. We found that microRNAs could be used as biomarkers for CF diabetes, complementing other tests,” explained Dr Eliasson.
I am very happy about the support we got from Cystic Fibrosis Trust. This research would not have been possible without the Strategic Research Centre funding led by Prof James Shaw. It has been so wonderful to work within this consortium of researchers with different perspectives, and we’re continuing to collaborate.
Prof Lena Elaisson, Lund University, Sweden
The study, 'Dynamic changes in circulating microRNAs during oral glucose tolerance testing support their potential as diagnostic and monitoring biomarkers in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes,' was published in the journal Diabetologia last month.
Read more about our Strategic Research Centre on CF diabetes
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