8 THE CHEMISTRY DEPARTMENT Flashcards
What was the state of diabetes treatment before insulin was discovered?
Diabetes was a horrible disease with almost no effective treatment, leading to a miserable death for most patients
Youngsters with diabetes often died within a year of diagnosis, and the only way to reduce sugar levels was to keep them on the edge of starvation.
Who discovered insulin?
Frederick Banting
Banting was a general practitioner with no prior experience in medical research.
What are the two main functions of the pancreas?
- Producing enzymes for digestion
- Producing insulin in the islets of Langerhans
What is insulin?
A small protein vital for maintaining blood sugar balance
Insulin is produced by the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas.
What was Banting’s hypothesis regarding the pancreatic duct?
Tying off the pancreatic duct would stop digestive juices from being produced, allowing insulin to be separated
This hypothesis was based on no evidence.
Who assisted Banting in his experiments?
Charles Herbert Best
What unexpected result did Banting and Best achieve in their experiments?
They produced pure insulin despite conducting their experiments incorrectly
Their approach was described as “wrongly conceived, wrongly conducted, and wrongly interpreted.”
What is the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes?
Type 1: Body stops producing insulin
Type 2: Insulin is less effective due to decreased production or insulin resistance
What is insulin resistance?
A condition where the body’s cells do not respond effectively to insulin
This is often seen in type 2 diabetes.
What are the primary causes of type 2 diabetes?
- Unhealthy lifestyle
- Genetic factors
What has been the trend in diabetes rates from 1980 to 2014?
The number of adults with diabetes increased from just over 100 million to over 400 million
What is a limitation of insulin therapy?
Insulin cannot be taken orally as it is broken down in the gut
It must be injected, which is tedious and less precise than natural insulin regulation.
What are hormones?
Substances produced in one part of the body that cause actions elsewhere
How many hormones were known by 1958?
About twenty hormones
What are endocrine glands?
Glands that secrete hormones directly into the bloodstream
What is the role of the pituitary gland?
Controls various bodily functions by producing hormones
It is often referred to as the master gland.
Who was Robert Wadlow?
The tallest human who ever lived, due to a pituitary condition causing overproduction of growth hormone
What experiment made Charles-Édouard Brown-Séquard famous?
He injected himself with extracts from animal testes, claiming rejuvenation effects
This was based on a misunderstanding of testosterone’s effects.
What is the estimated number of hormones currently known?
At least eighty, possibly up to a hundred
What did Brown-Séquard report feeling after his experiment?
Frisky as a forty-year-old
This feeling was entirely psychological.
Why do mammalian testes contain almost no testosterone?
Because it is sent out into the body as quickly as it is made
Mammals manufacture very little testosterone.
What term did E. H. Starling coin in 1905?
Hormone
The term means ‘to set in motion’ in Greek.
When was the first journal devoted to endocrinology founded?
1917
Who is considered the real father of endocrinology?
Thomas Addison
