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Review
. 2023 Feb 4;15(4):811.
doi: 10.3390/nu15040811.

Epigenetics in Obesity and Diabetes Mellitus: New Insights

Rosario Suárez  1 , Sebastián P Chapela  2   3 , Ludwig Álvarez-Córdova  4   5 , Estefanía Bautista-Valarezo  1 , Yoredy Sarmiento-Andrade  1 , Ludovica Verde  6 , Evelyn Frias-Toral  4 , Gerardo Sarno  7
Affiliations
Review

Epigenetics in Obesity and Diabetes Mellitus: New Insights

Rosario Suárez et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

A long-term complication of obesity is the development of type 2 diabetes (T2D). Patients with T2D have been described as having epigenetic modifications. Epigenetics is the post-transcriptional modification of DNA or associated factors containing genetic information. These environmentally-influenced modifications, maintained during cell division, cause stable changes in gene expression. Epigenetic modifications of T2D are DNA methylation, acetylation, ubiquitylation, SUMOylation, and phosphorylation at the lysine residue at the amino terminus of histones, affecting DNA, histones, and non-coding RNA. DNA methylation has been shown in pancreatic islets, adipose tissue, skeletal muscle, and the liver. Furthermore, epigenetic changes have been observed in chronic complications of T2D, such as diabetic nephropathy, diabetic retinopathy, and diabetic neuropathy. Recently, a new drug has been developed which acts on bromodomains and extraterminal (BET) domain proteins, which operate like epigenetic readers and communicate with chromatin to make DNA accessible for transcription by inhibiting them. This drug (apabetalone) is being studied to prevent major adverse cardiovascular events in people with T2D, low HDL cholesterol, chronic kidney failure, and recent coronary events. This review aims to describe the relationship between obesity, long-term complications such as T2D, and epigenetic modifications and their possible treatments.

Keywords: diabetes; epigenetics; nephropathy; neuropathy; obesity; retinopathy.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The role of epigenetics in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. DNA methylation, histone modifications (acetylation/methylation), and noncoding RNA are present through different pathways of the pathophysiology of the disease.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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