Department of Cell Biology, Imperial College London, UK.
Islets. 2010 Jan-Feb;2(1):49-50. doi: 10.4161/isl.2.1.10259.
Genome wide association studies have identified the islet-restricted zinc transporter ZnT8 (SLC30A8) as a likely player in the control of insulin secretion and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The author's laboratory and others have now developed knockout mouse models for the ZnT8 gene, and have studied the impact of the at-risk R325W polymorphism on the activity of this crucial islet zinc transporter. Whilst there are intriguing differences between the phenotypes of the animal models the new studies provide strong evidence that the polymorphism in the SLC30A8 gene identified by human genetic screens is causal for the increased disease risk. The new results also reinforce the view that this transporter represents an exciting therapeutic target for intervention in type 2 diabetes.
全基因组关联研究已经确定胰岛特异性锌转运体 ZnT8（SLC30A8）在控制胰岛素分泌和 2 型糖尿病发病风险方面起着重要作用。作者实验室和其他实验室现已开发出 ZnT8 基因敲除小鼠模型，并研究了风险 R325W 多态性对这种关键胰岛锌转运体活性的影响。虽然动物模型的表型存在有趣的差异，但新的研究提供了强有力的证据，证明人类遗传筛选中发现的 SLC30A8 基因多态性是导致疾病风险增加的原因。新的研究结果还进一步证实，该转运体是 2 型糖尿病干预治疗的一个令人兴奋的治疗靶点。
