Serum insulin and amylin values in a sample of non-diabetic Mexican elderly.

Abstract

The soluble amylin has gained importance in the functionality of insulin by cosecretion of both enzymes in response to the same stimuli from β-cells and the facilitation of amylin´s functions for insulin. Raging from the delaying of nutrients absorption through the intestine, to sensibilization of insulin receptors in tissues. Hence, the serum levels of both enzymes is significant. Objective: Our interest was to determine which are the levels of insulin and amylin in non-diabetic elderly individuals and their behavior following a glucose loading.
Materials and methods: There were 88 studied patients in range from 60 to 101 years old, 62 females and 26 males over 60 years without DM2 diagnosis. Blood samples were taken during fasting and 2 hours after drinking 75 grs of glucose.
Results: Fasting insulin values were 11.32± 6.66 µUI/ml, meanwhile for fasting Amylin there were de 7.48 ± 3.4 pM/l. The finding was a dissociation in the blood values of both hormones. Insulin levels increased in response to glucose loading, confirming β-cell response. However, post-loading amylin levels were lower. This possibly due to fibrillar Amylin presence in the pancreas or increased uptake of amylin by tissued with the elevation of insulin.
Conclusions: Both basal and post-glucose loading of insulin was lower in elderly subjects compared to the reported values in non-elderly populations, nonetheless there was still response to glucose loading, albeit diminished. In hypertensive patients the insulin liberation was higher than in non-hypertensive individuals, potentially to the response to the existent insulin resistance. In patients with low BMI, the insulin response to glucose was higher than in those with normal BMI possibly due to possibly increased pancreatic response to glucose loading.