Presenter: Ethan Crawford
Authors: Ethan Crawford
Faculty Advisor: Jeffrey Tessem
Institution: Brigham Young University
Diabetes mellitus is a disease that affects over 10% of the population of the United States. Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is primarily characterized by elevated glucose levels, which is caused by an inability of various tissues in the body to sense insulin and remove glucose from circulation. Interestingly, the elevated blood glucose level is correlated with increased circulating insulin and glucagon levels. These high insulin levels are compensatory due to target tissue unresponsiveness to insulin secretion. Certain foods contain compounds that possess beneficial effects on beta-cells in the pancreatic islets, and we have shown that cocoa contains some of these compounds. One category of beneficial compounds are flavonoids, which are secondary metabolites that are found in a variety of plants and have antioxidant effects that can reduce stress and protect the body from oxidation damage that can lead to disease. We have shown that the flavonoid epicatechin mitochondrial respiration and glucose stimulated insulin secretion. The alpha-cell senses changes in circulating glucose levels to secrete glucagon using mechanisms similar to the beta cell. We hypothesized that epicatechin can modulate glucose regulated glucagon secretion. Here we present the effects of epicatechin on alpha-cell mitochondrial respiration and glucagon secretion. This study will provide important insight into how dietary flavonoids can aid in the maintenance of blood glucose levels, thus keeping T2D in check.