Exercise: not just a medicine for muscle?

摘要

A sedentary lifestyle, poor dietary choices and obesity are causes of whole body insulin resistance, a pathological condition which precedes and augments the development of type 2 diabetes. Since skeletal muscle is the primary site of glucose disposal after a meal, its role in insulin resistance has received a great deal of attention; however, the role of the liver and its contribution to systemic insulin resistance cannot be ignored. In a healthy state, hepatic glucose production is increased during fasting to maintain euglycaemia, but is inhibited during a transition to postprandial conditions by increased circulating insulin. The activation of the insulin signalling pathway and a reduced activity of gluconeogenic pathways (PEPCK and G6Pase) culminates in a rapid reduction of hepatic glucose production.