Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2003 May 16;300(5622):1140-2.
doi: 10.1126/science.1082889.

Mitochondrial dysfunction in the elderly: possible role in insulin resistance

Kitt Falk Petersen  1 , Douglas Befroy, Sylvie Dufour, James Dziura, Charlotte Ariyan, Douglas L Rothman, Loretta DiPietro, Gary W Cline, Gerald I Shulman
Affiliations

Mitochondrial dysfunction in the elderly: possible role in insulin resistance

Kitt Falk Petersen et al. Science. .

Abstract

Insulin resistance is a major factor in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes in the elderly. To investigate how insulin resistance arises, we studied healthy, lean, elderly and young participants matched for lean body mass and fat mass. Elderly study participants were markedly insulin-resistant as compared with young controls, and this resistance was attributable to reduced insulin-stimulated muscle glucose metabolism. These changes were associated with increased fat accumulation in muscle and liver tissue assessed by 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, and with a approximately 40% reduction in mitochondrial oxidative and phosphorylation activity, as assessed by in vivo 13C/31P NMR spectroscopy. These data support the hypothesis that an age-associated decline in mitochondrial function contributes to insulin resistance in the elderly.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Plasma concentrations of glucose, insulin, and fatty acids before and after an oral glucose tolerance test (24) in young and elderly participants. (A) Glucose [P = 0.10 for the area under the curve (AUC) for the elderly (16,978 ± 656) as compared with the controls (14,495 ± 1,116)]. (B) Insulin [asterisks indicate P < 0.03 for AUC for the elderly (6590 ± 853) as compared with the controls (3986 ± 519)]. (C) Fatty acids (P = 0.08 for the basal concentration of fatty acids in the elderly versus the controls).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. King H, Aubert RE, Herman WH. Diabetes Care. 1998;21:1414. - PubMed
    1. Huse DM, Oster G, Killen AR, Lacey MJ, Colditz GA. JAMA. 1989;262:2708. - PubMed
    1. Sasaki A, Suzuki T, Horiuchi N. Diabetologia. 1982;22:154. - PubMed
    1. Saad MF, et al. Lancet. 1989;1:1356. - PubMed
    1. Rowe JW, Minaker KL, Pallotta JA, Flier JS. J Clin Invest. 1983;71:1581. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms