ROS-mediated glucose metabolic reprogram induces insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes

Oxidative stress is known to contribute to insulin resistance in diabetes, however the mechanism is not clear. Here we show that reactive oxygen species (ROS) could reprogram the glucose metabolism through upregulating the pentose pathway so as to induce insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes (T2DM). By using streptozotocin-high fat diet (STZ-HFD) induced T2DM in rats, we show that diabetic rats exhibited high level of oxidative stress accompanied with insulin resistance. Hypoxia inducible factor (HIF-1α) protein expression as well as its downstream target glucokinase (GK), were upregulated; The glycogen synthesis increased accordingly; However the glycolysis was inhibited as indicated by decreased phosphofructokinase-1 (PFK-1), pyruvate kinase (PK), phospho-PFK-2/PFK-2 (p-PFK-2/PFK-2) ratio, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase (PDK); Pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) which promotes pyruvate to generate acetyl-CoA declined as well. While phospho-acetyl-CoA carboxylase/acetyl-CoA carboxylase (p-ACC/ACC) ratio increased, meaning that lipid beta-oxidation increased. The pentose pathway was activated as indicated by increased G6PD activity and NADPH level. Our results suggest that diabetic rats countervail ROS stress through increasing pentose pathway, and reprogram the energy metabolic pathway from glycolysis into lipid oxidation in order to compensate the ATP requirement of the body, which causes insulin resistance.