Researchers established a robust association between exposure to benzene, a prevalent airborne volatile organic compound, and insulin resistance.
RT’s Three Key Takeaways:
- Air Pollution Linked to Diabetes Risk: Researchers found a strong correlation between benzene exposure from air pollution and increased insulin resistance, a key factor in type 2 diabetes.
- Animal Studies Confirm Metabolic Impact: Mice exposed to benzene developed elevated blood glucose and insulin levels within seven days, highlighting the compound’s metabolic effects.
- Role of Inflammation in Diabetes Risk: The study identified the microglial NF-κB pathway as a critical mechanism linking benzene exposure to metabolic disruptions and diabetes onset.
A new study by researchers at Wayne State University links exposure to air pollution to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.
A paper published in Diabetes from the American Diabetes Association established a robust association between exposure to benzene, a prevalent airborne volatile organic compound, and insulin resistance in humans across all ages.
Marianna Sadagurski, PhD, associate professor at Wayne State University’s Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, was the lead author of the paper. The study was partially supported by Wayne State University’s Center for Urban Responses to Environmental Stressors (CURES) and Center for Leadership in Environmental Awareness and Research (CLEAR).
“In our paper, we performed a meta-analysis where we collected data from different populations ranging from young adults to the elderly,” says Sadagurski in a release. “We saw a significant correlation between the presence of benzene metabolites in people’s urine and increased index of insulin resistance.”
Inflammation Pathway Tied to Benzene’s Metabolic Impact
Sadagurski and her fellow researchers concluded that the microglial NF-κB pathway plays a critical role in chemical-induced metabolic disturbances, revealing a vital pathophysiological mechanism linking exposure to airborne toxicants and the onset of metabolic diseases.
“In this study, we exposed mice to benzene to see how it affects their blood glucose levels and energy expenditure,” says Sadagurski in a release. “Our research revealed that within seven days of exposure, they developed high blood glucose insulin levels.”
Following exposure in mice, disruptions in energy homeostasis, accompanied by modifications in the hypothalamic transcriptome and alterations in insulin and immune signaling, were observed exclusively in males, leading to a surge in blood glucose levels.
The researchers noted that acute benzene exposure triggers hypothalamic insulin resistance and provokes an inflammatory shift associated with NF-κB pathway in the microglial transcriptome. Genetic ablation of this pathway in microglia, rescued metabolic phenotype in benzene-exposed mice.
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