Li Xiaokun, Cai Lu, Feng Wenke
Chinese-American Research Institute for Diabetic Complications, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The WenzhouMedical College, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, PR China.
Mini Rev Med Chem. 2007 Jul;7(7):761-8. doi: 10.2174/138955707781024490.
Diabetes is a widespread disease, and its development and toxic effects on various organs have been attributed to increased oxidative stress. Metallothionein (MT) is a group of intracellular metal-binding and cysteine-rich proteins, being highly inducible in many tissues. Although it mainly acts as a regulator of metal homeostasis such as zinc and copper in tissues, MT was found to be a potent antioxidant and adaptive (or stress) protein to protect cells and tissues from oxidative stress. Studies showed that zinc-induced or genetically enhanced MT synthesis in the pancreas prevented the development of spontaneous or chemically-induced diabetes. Genetically or pharmacologically enhanced MT expression in various organs including heart and kidney provided significant protection from diabetes-induced organ dysfunction such as cardiomyopathy and nephropathy. These studies suggest that MT as an adaptive protein can prevent both diabetes development and diabetic complications. This mini-review will thus briefly describe MT's biochemical features and then summarize the data on the protective effect of MT against diabetes and diabetic complications. In addition, the coordinative role of MT with zinc in the prevention of diabetes and its complications will also be discussed.
糖尿病是一种广泛流行的疾病，其发展过程以及对各个器官的毒性作用都归因于氧化应激的增加。金属硫蛋白（MT）是一类细胞内金属结合且富含半胱氨酸的蛋白质，在许多组织中具有高度可诱导性。尽管MT主要作为组织中锌和铜等金属稳态的调节剂，但它被发现是一种强大的抗氧化剂和适应性（或应激）蛋白，可保护细胞和组织免受氧化应激的影响。研究表明，胰腺中锌诱导或基因增强的MT合成可预防自发性或化学诱导性糖尿病的发展。在包括心脏和肾脏在内的各种器官中，通过基因或药理学方法增强MT表达，可显著保护这些器官免受糖尿病诱导的器官功能障碍，如心肌病和肾病。这些研究表明，MT作为一种适应性蛋白可以预防糖尿病的发展和糖尿病并发症。因此，本综述将简要描述MT的生化特性，然后总结MT对糖尿病和糖尿病并发症保护作用的数据。此外，还将讨论MT与锌在预防糖尿病及其并发症中的协同作用。
