Published on
Updated
Reading 2 mins.
Medical validation:
August 19, 2022
A team of scientists from the University of Geneva has identified a molecule in the blood that could save time in diabetic screening. And detect it even before the appearance of symptoms
This is excellent news, bringing hope for the (very) many people and families affected by diabetes. (More than 4 million French people are identified as diabetic, a figure that is constantly increasing). A team of researchers from the University of Geneva has just identified a molecule, 1,5-anhydroglucitol, identifiable by blood test, which could indicate diabetes in the process of development in people at risk, even before the situation , is irreversible. This study could therefore act upstream of the disease.
A small sugar molecule that says a lot
To reach this conclusion, the team analyzed thousands of molecules in the blood of healthy, prediabetic and diabetic mice, until they found the interesting molecule, “1,5-anhydroglucitol”. This small sugar alone sends a message: its decrease in the blood indicates a deficiency in beta cells, characteristic of prediabetes.
Also tested on humans, the researchers were able to confirm their discovery: Secondly, the scientific team tested these results on human beings, diabetics and non-diabetics. “We were also able to observe a decrease in this sugar in diabetics” confirms Cecilia Jiménez-Sánchez, co-author of the study. The most interesting being that this reduction can be observed even before the appearance of the first symptoms.
Consult a GP online
The hope of being able to act much sooner
Diabetes is characterized by chronic hyperglycaemia, caused either by a lack of insulin (type 1 diabetes) or by poor use of it by the body (type 2 diabetes). It is often the result of a lack of physical activity associated with an unbalanced diet. If not treated in time, it can lead to kidney failure, strokes, blindness… Unfortunately, when the diagnosis is established, a third of people already suffer from cardiovascular or kidney disorders.
A result that would soon no longer be a fatality? For the authors of the study, “If the disease is identified upstream, at the prediabetes stage, its progression to established diabetes can be counteracted by adopting an appropriate lifestyle.” All thanks to a simple blood test.