Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Contributors
- Foreword
- Section 1 Introductory Principles
- Section 2 Common Medical Disorders
- 13 Developmental disorders
- 14 Genes, environment and cancer
- 15 The polygenic basis of breast cancer
- 16 TP53: A master gene in normal and tumor suppression
- 17 Genetics of colorectal cancer
- 18 Genetics of autoimmune disease
- 19 Susceptibility to infectious diseases
- 20 Inflammatory bowel diseases
- 21 Genetic anemias
- 22 Genetics of chronic disease: obesity
- 23 Type 2 diabetes mellitus
- 24 Genetics of coronary heart disease
- 25 Genetics of hypertension
- 26 Obstructive pulmonary disease
- 27 Skeletal disorders
- 28 The genetics of common skin diseases
- 29 Molecular genetics of Alzheimer's disease and other adult-onset dementias
- 30 Major psychiatric disorders in adult life
- 31 Speech and language disorders
- 32 Common forms of visual handicap
- 33 Genetic and environmental influences on hearing impairment
- 34 Pharmacogenomics: clinical applications
- Index
- References
23 - Type 2 diabetes mellitus
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 17 August 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Contributors
- Foreword
- Section 1 Introductory Principles
- Section 2 Common Medical Disorders
- 13 Developmental disorders
- 14 Genes, environment and cancer
- 15 The polygenic basis of breast cancer
- 16 TP53: A master gene in normal and tumor suppression
- 17 Genetics of colorectal cancer
- 18 Genetics of autoimmune disease
- 19 Susceptibility to infectious diseases
- 20 Inflammatory bowel diseases
- 21 Genetic anemias
- 22 Genetics of chronic disease: obesity
- 23 Type 2 diabetes mellitus
- 24 Genetics of coronary heart disease
- 25 Genetics of hypertension
- 26 Obstructive pulmonary disease
- 27 Skeletal disorders
- 28 The genetics of common skin diseases
- 29 Molecular genetics of Alzheimer's disease and other adult-onset dementias
- 30 Major psychiatric disorders in adult life
- 31 Speech and language disorders
- 32 Common forms of visual handicap
- 33 Genetic and environmental influences on hearing impairment
- 34 Pharmacogenomics: clinical applications
- Index
- References
Summary
Introduction
Type 2 diabetes accounts for the overwhelming majority of diabetes worldwide (Zimmet et al., 2001) and represents a major and growing challenge to biomedical care. In contrast to many other complex traits, the environmental exposures which contribute to the development of this condition are well characterized: but as they are so pervasive, efforts to reduce the prevalence of this condition through environmental and behavioral manipulation have had only limited impact. Personal risk of developing type 2 diabetes results from the interaction between these pervasive exposures and our individual portfolios of susceptibility and protective genomic variants. Over the past decade, more and more of these variants have been identified and characterized. The challenge for the next decade is to understand how these variants interact with each other and with environment, and to use this information to target preventive and therapeutic interventions to maximize their effect.
Type 2 diabetes: the next global epidemic?
Definitions
In contrast to type 1 diabetes, which is known to result from autoimmune destruction of the insulin-secreting beta-cells of the pancreas, leading to lifelong dependence on exogenous insulin, the etiology of type 2 diabetes is poorly understood (Kahn, 2003). Whilst type 1 diabetes is typically diagnosed in childhood or early adulthood, type 2 diabetes classically presents in later life. These clinical distinctions lie behind previous disease classifications in which type 2 diabetes was known originally as maturity-onset diabetes, and subsequently, as non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (World Health Organization Study Group, 1985).
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Genes and Common DiseasesGenetics in Modern Medicine, pp. 344 - 358Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2007