A new study showed that bacteria not only plays a significant role in causing infectious diseases, but it also causes Type-2 diabetes.
The research could well lead to the development of vaccine to prevent one of the most common diseases, Type-2 diabetes. US researchers revealed that toxins produced by a bacterium may cause the disease.
The researchers noted that Staphylococcus aureus (staph) bacteria causes rabbits to develop the trademark syndrome of Type-2 diabetes, such as insulin resistance, systemic inflammation and glucose intolerance, according to records on Economic Times.
Lead researcher Patrick Schlievert, professor at University of Iowa in the US said, "We basically reproduced Type-2 diabetes in rabbits simply through chronic exposure to the staph superantigen."
Therapies aimed at eradicating staph bacteria or neutralizing the superantigens could potentially prevent or treat Type 2 diabetes, the research findings suggest.
"I think we have a way to intercede here and alter the course of diabetes," he said. "We are working on a vaccine against the superantigens and we believe that this type of vaccine could prevent the development of Type-2 diabetes."
The study further show that superantigens interact with fat cells and the immune system in order to cause chronic systemic inflammation and this inflammation then leads to insulin resistance and other symptoms characteristic of Type-2 diabetes.
It's no secret; there is a strong link between obesity and Type-2 diabetes. Fat cells contribute to development of the disease basically by altering metabolism and chronic inflammation, according to records on Medical News Today.
The study published in the journal mBio also explains why obesity that leads to changes in the ecosystem of bacteria that colonise our bodies is a risk factor for Type-2 diabetes.
Schlievert explains, "What we are finding is that as people gain weight, they are increasingly likely to be colonised by staph bacteria - to have large numbers of these bacteria living on the surface of their skin."
"People who are colonised by staph bacteria are being chronically exposed to the superantigens the bacteria are producing," Schlievert added.
