The endogenous substance FGF21 has beneficial effects on blood lipids and glucose levels in rodents and monkeys, and is an interesting candidate for treatment of type 2 diabetes. Scientists at Karolinska Institutet have now examined if FGF21 has a similar function in humans. The results are presented in the journal Cell Metabolism.
Epithelial cells cover all internal and external surfaces of the body. They have an upper and a lower side, which have different functions. Until now, scientists assumed that these two poles develop in all epithelial cells in the same manner - irrespective of whether they are located in the heart, in the retina, or in the nervous system. Now, Dr. Nana Bit-Avragim, Dr. Nicole Hellwig, and Dr. Salim Abdelilah-Seyfried have shown that, depending on the tissue, a different variation of a complex consisting of five core proteins is active and orientates the epithelial cells. The results of the MDC scientists have now been published in the Journal of Cell Science (2008, Vol. 121, pp. 2503-2510)*.
