ABSTRACT
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 855 North Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Obesity is tightly linked to type 2 diabetes. However, the molecular mechanisms underpinning this observation remain incompletely understood. One proposed mechanism is that obesity alters the expression and secretion of polypeptide hormones by adipocytes, actively contributing to insulin resistance in multiple tissues. Resistin is one candidate molecule in this process, as a protein that has been shown to disturb glucose homeostasis and impair insulin action in rodent models of obesity and diabetes. Additionally, resistin inhibits adipogenesis and promotes infl ammation, linking excess fat mass to infl ammation, impaired systemic insulin sensitivity and glucose metabolism. Much work remains to be done, but future studies on resistin will likely provide novel therapeutic strategies for treating metabolic and infl ammatory diseases associated with obesity.
