Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 7, 2026
08:13
Study of In Vivo Glucose Metabolism in High-fat Diet-fed Mice Using Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) and Insulin Tolerance Test (ITT)
Published on: January 7, 2018
Insulin and carbohydrate metabolism.
Kathryn Beardsall1, Barbro M S Diderholm, David B Dunger
1Department of Paediatrics, University of Cambridge, Box 116, Level 8, Addenbrooke's University Hospital NHS Trust, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 2QQ, UK. kb274@cam.ac.uk
Best Practice & Research. Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism
|February 19, 2008
Summary
Maternal high blood sugar during pregnancy, including gestational diabetes, harms fetal development. Current diagnostic criteria for gestational diabetes may need reevaluation due to continuous risks across glucose levels.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive biology
- Neonatal adaptation
- Endocrinology
Background:
- Fetal glucose regulation is mother-dependent.
- Maternal hyperglycemia and gestational diabetes (GDM) negatively impact fetal development.
- Current GDM diagnostic criteria are debated.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the impact of maternal glucose levels on fetal outcomes.
- To examine the challenges in neonatal glucose homeostasis adaptation.
- To explore the long-term metabolic risks in infants with abnormal birth weights.
Main Methods:
- Review of recent data on maternal glucose control and fetal outcomes.
- Analysis of factors affecting neonatal glucose adaptation.
- Examination of associations between birth weight extremes and later-life glucose intolerance.
Main Results:
- Fetal outcome risks appear continuous with maternal glucose levels, suggesting a need to revise GDM diagnostic thresholds.
- Neonatal adaptation to independent glucose homeostasis is impaired in small for gestational age (SGA), premature, and large for gestational age (LGA) infants.
- Infants at birth weight extremes face higher risks of impaired glucose tolerance and diabetes later in life.
Conclusions:
- Maternal glucose control during pregnancy is critical for fetal well-being and long-term offspring health.
- Neonatal adaptation to glucose homeostasis is vulnerable in infants with altered fetal growth.
- Birth weight extremes are linked to increased risk of developing diabetes in adulthood.
Related Concept Videos
01:36Carbohydrate Metabolism
Carbohydrates are polymers composed of molecules containing atoms of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. One gram of carbohydrate can provide four kilo-calories of energy, which makes it the most efficient instant energy source.
Starch accounts for approximately 60% of the carbohydrates consumed by humans. Since amylase enzymes cannot function in the stomach's acidic environment, starch can only be digested in the mouth and small intestine. Simple sugars are found naturally in milk and fruits in the...
Starch accounts for approximately 60% of the carbohydrates consumed by humans. Since amylase enzymes cannot function in the stomach's acidic environment, starch can only be digested in the mouth and small intestine. Simple sugars are found naturally in milk and fruits in the...
01:36Carbohydrate Metabolism
Carbohydrates are polymers composed of molecules containing atoms of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. One gram of carbohydrate can provide four kilo-calories of energy, which makes it the most efficient instant energy source.
Starch accounts for approximately 60% of the carbohydrates consumed by humans. Since amylase enzymes cannot function in the stomach's acidic environment, starch can only be digested in the mouth and small intestine. Simple sugars are found naturally in milk and fruits in the...
Starch accounts for approximately 60% of the carbohydrates consumed by humans. Since amylase enzymes cannot function in the stomach's acidic environment, starch can only be digested in the mouth and small intestine. Simple sugars are found naturally in milk and fruits in the...
01:19Overview of Carbohydrate Metabolism
Carbohydrate metabolism is a fundamental biochemical process that ensures a constant supply of energy to living cells. The most important carbohydrate is glucose, which can be broken down via glycolysis to enter into the Krebs cycle and eventually lead to the production of ATP through oxidative phosphorylation.
Glucose transport into cells is facilitated by a family of transport proteins called GLUT (Glucose Transporters). GLUT4 is the primary glucose transporter for insulin-stimulated glucose...
Glucose transport into cells is facilitated by a family of transport proteins called GLUT (Glucose Transporters). GLUT4 is the primary glucose transporter for insulin-stimulated glucose...
01:02Glucose Homeostasis: Regulation of Blood Glucose
Carbohydrates consumed through foods are converted into glucose, a crucial energy source for the body. In the prandial state, high blood glucose levels stimulate the secretion of insulin from the pancreas. Insulin inhibits hepatic glucose production and stimulates glucose uptake and metabolism by muscle and adipose tissue. The excess glucose is converted into glycogen and stored in the liver and muscles.
During fasting, when blood glucose levels are low, the pancreas secretes glucagon. it...
During fasting, when blood glucose levels are low, the pancreas secretes glucagon. it...
01:16Hormones Regulating Blood Glucose
Insulin is released by beta cells of the pancreas when blood glucose levels are high. It facilitates glucose absorption and utilization in insulin-dependent cells with insulin receptors on their plasma membranes. Insulin promotes glucose uptake by increasing the number of glucose transport proteins in the cell membrane, allowing glucose to enter the cell. As a result, glucose utilization and ATP production are enhanced.
In addition to accelerating glucose uptake and utilization, insulin has...
In addition to accelerating glucose uptake and utilization, insulin has...
01:27Glucose Homeostasis: Pancreatic Islets and Insulin Secretion
The pancreatic islets comprising only 1%-2% of the volume are highly vascularized and innervated mini-organs. They contain five endocrine cell types, including β cells that secrete insulin, which is synthesized as a single polypeptide chain, preproinsulin, processed to proinsulin, and finally to insulin and C-peptide. This process is complex and regulated, involving the Golgi complex, the endoplasmic reticulum, and the secretory granules of the β cell.
Insulin and C-peptide are co-secreted in...
Insulin and C-peptide are co-secreted in...