diabetes Flashcards
what is diabetes
chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas doesn’t produce enough insulin or when the body cannot effectively use insulin it produces
what does the term hypoglycaemia mean and what are the symptoms
-low blood glucose
-hunger, dizziness, shaking, sweating, anxious, impaired vision, weakness and fatigue, headache
what does the term hyperglycaemia mean and the symptoms
-high blood glucose
-extreme thirst, frequent urination, dry skin, hunger, blurred vision, drowsiness, nausea
what is another name and the age of onset of type 1 diabetes
-insulin-dependent diabetes
-affects children
what is type 1 diabetes caused by
-insulin producing beta cells are damages
-unable to produce enough insulin/ don’t secrete insulin
-may be due to auto-immune disease
-caused by virus
-family history/ genetic
what are the key features/ risk factors of type 1 diabetes
-Unable to synthesise sufficient insulin
-Cannot store excess glucose as glycogen which leads to hyperglycaemia
-No store of glycogen available to increase blood glucose levels when blood glucose falls
-Sufferers can therefore have episodes of hypoglycaemia (low blood glucose)
what are the treatments for type 1 diabetes
-Insulin injections and monitoring of blood glucose levels
-Insulin pump therapy
-Islet cell transplantation
-Pancreas transplant
-Stem cell therapy is currently being researched
what is the alternative name and age of onset for type 2 diabetes
-non-insulin dependent diabetes
-affects older people
what is type 2 diabetes cause by
-lack of sensitivity of liver and muscle cells to insulin and possibly also reduced production of insulin by beta cells
what are the key features/ risk factors of type 2 diabetes
-Do not synthesise enough insulin
-With ageing the responsiveness of target cells to insulin decreases
-Excess glucose in the blood is not removed leading to permanently high blood glucose (hyperglycaemia)
Early onset of type 2 diabetes is associated with:
-Obesity
-Lack of regular exercise
-High sugar diet (particularly refined sugars)
-Asian or Afro-Carribean origin
-Family history
describe 3 factors that increase a person’s risk of developing type 2 diabetes
-increasing age
-obese/ overweight
-lack of physical activity
-high intake of sugar
what are the treatments of type 2 diabetes
-Controlled diet matching carbohydrate intake and use, possibly supplemented with insulin injections or drugs that slow down absorption of glucose by digestive system
-Lifestyle change to include regular exercise
-Medication to reduce the amount of glucose released into the blood by the liver or to boost insulin production
-In severe cases, insulin injections or medication to slow down absorption of glucose by the small intestine
why was insulin from pigs used to treat diabetes
-best match to human insulin
what are advantages of using insulin produced by bacteria
1.Exact copy of human insulin – fast acting more effective
2.Less chance of developing tolerance
3.Less chance of rejection due to immune response
4.Less risk of infection
5.Cheaper
6.manufacturing process more adaptable to demand
7.Less people have moral objections to bacterial vs animal insulin
what are stem cells and where are they found
undifferentiated cells that could be harvested from bone marrow or placental tissue
how could stem cells help treat type 1 diabetes, what impact could the use of stem cells have on a diabetic
-researchers are trying to harvest and differentiate stem cells into Beta cells
-precursor cells found in the pancreas of mice have been found with same properties as stem cells
-researchers are searching for precursor cells in human pancreas tissue to use to make beta cells
