Iron and Diabetes Risk

Iron plays a direct and causal role in diabetes pathogenesis mediated both by ß cell failure and insulin resistance. Iron also regulates metabolism in most tissues involved in fuel homeostasis, with the adipocyte in particular serving an iron-sensing role. The underlying molecular mechanisms mediating these effects are numerous and incompletely understood but include oxidant stress and modulation of adipokines and intracellular signal transduction pathways (Cell Metabolism)