Aging, diabetes and inflammation can be better understood with a new molecular synthetic process developed by researchers at Yale University. The new process synthesizes glucosepane, which has been found to be a critical component of aging and diabetes.
Senior Author, David Spiegel, M.D., said, “Glucosepane forms in all human beings during the aging process, and also forms during various diseases, including diabetes. It is unknown what role glucosepane might play in aging and in these diseases, but several hypotheses have been proposed. With access to synthetic glucosepane, we will now be able to generate tools to examine the role this molecule plays in human health and also, perhaps, develop molecules to inhibit or reverse its formation.”
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In the past it was extremely difficult to study glucosepane because it has an odd structure and unusual properties. Every time researchers needed to deal with it, time-consuming procedures had to occur to get any results. The new synthetic process lets researchers study glucosepane with very few hindrances.
Dale L. Boger, Ph.D., from Scripps Research Institute wrote the Yale study represents, “an important, yet largely underexplored, frontier for chemistry with broad implications in human health.” He added that Spiegel’s methodology, “is important in its own right and will find applications well beyond that envisioned by the authors.”
The findings were published in the journal Science.
