Insulin resistance and decreased insulin response to glucose in lean type 2 diabetics

In an attempt to determine the mechanism of decreased glucose tolerance in lean type 2 diabetics, glucose turnover in such subjects and controls was studied under basal conditions and during hyperglycemia induced by intravenous administration of glucose. The diabetics had decreased intravenous glucose tolerance and a fasting plasma glucose of 6-8 mM (108-144 mg/dl). Glucose was infused for 2 hr at 2 mg/kg per min in the controls (n = 16) and diabetics (n = 9). Furthermore, 11 healthy subjects were infused also with glucose at 4 mg/kg per min to match the glycemia of the diabetics. Glucose production, utilization, and metabolic clearance were assessed by the primed constant tracer infusion technique. In the basal state, diabetics showed normal plasma insulin, C peptide, and glucagon concentrations. Their increased basal plasma glucose levels were associated with normal rates of glucose production and utilization, but the metabolic glucose clearance was 21% lower than in the controls (P < 0.001), indicating decreased sensitivity to insulin. During infusion of glucose at 2 mg/kg per min, the hyperglycemia attained in the diabetics (170 mg/dl) was higher than that in controls (115 mg/dl) but comparable to that of the controls exposed to the higher glucose load. With the lower glucose load, metabolic clearance rate decreased more markedly in diabetics, again suggesting insulin resistance. This was further substantiated by the fact that, at the same insulin levels, glucose utilization did not increase more in the diabetics than in the controls, although the glycemia reached was considerably higher in the diabetics. With the lower glucose load, glucose production was suppressed to the same degree in the controls and diabetics, although the attained glycemia was much more marked in the latter. Because both insulin and hyperglycemia can suppress glucose production, some defect in the regulation of glucose production of the diabetics is also indicated. The insulin and C peptide levels were much higher in the controls than in the diabetics at the same levels of glycemia, demonstrating the inadequacy of insulin response to glycemia of the diabetics. Glucagon concentration was equally suppressed in all groups. In conclusion, impaired glucose tolerance of mild type 2 diabetics resulted both from inadequate insulin response and from decreased sensitivity to insulin. The insulin resistance could mainly be ascribed to inadequate glucose uptake, but a defect in glucose-induced suppression of glucose production may also have contributed.