Insulin signaling and glucose transport in skeletal muscle from first-degree relatives of type 2 diabetic patients

Aberrant insulin signaling and glucose metabolism in skeletal muscle from type 2 diabetic. patients may arise from genetic defects and an altered metabolic milieu. We determined insulin action on signal transduction and glucose transport in isolated vastus lateralis skeletal muscle from normal glucose-tolerant first-degree relatives of type 2 diabetic patients (n = 8, 41 +/- 3 years, BMI 25.1 +/- 0.8 kg/m(2)) and healthy control subjects (n = 9, 40 2 years, BMI 23.4 +/- 0.7 kg/m(2)) with no family history of diabetes. Basal and submaximal insulin-stimulated (0.6 and 1.2 nmol/l) glucose transport was comparable between groups, whereas the maximal response (120 nmol/l) was 38% lower (P < 0.05) in the relatives. Insulin increased phosphorylation of Akt and Akt substrate of 160 kDa (AS160) in a dose-dependent manner, with comparable responses between groups. AS160 phosphorylation and glucose transport were positively correlated in control subjects (R-2 = 0.97, P = 0.01) but not relatives (R-2 = 0.46, P = 0.32). mRNA of key transcriptional factors and coregulators of mitochondrial biogenesis were also determined. Skeletal muscle mRNA expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma coactivator (PGC)-1 alpha, PGC-1 beta, PPAR delta, nuclear respiratory factor-1, and uncoupling protein-3 was comparable between first-degree relatives and control subjects. In conclusion, the uncoupling of insulin action on Akt/AS160 signaling and glucose transport implicates defective GLUT4 trafficking as an early event in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes.