Abstract
THE New Zealand obese (NZO) mouse is characterised by obesity, hyperinsulinaemia, insulin resistance and mild glucose intolerance1–8. It has been thought of as a model of the adult-type human diabetes mellitus, but neither the genetics of the NZO syndrome nor its basic cause have been elucidated. The metabolic disturbances found in these mice, for example increased rates of lipogenesis9–12 and defects in insulin secretion8,13,14, could well be secondary to chronic hyperinsulinaemia and hyperglycaemia. Because the NZO strain appeared to share a common ancestry with the NZB model of systemic autoimmune disease1,2,15 we felt that the metabolic syndrome in the NZO mouse might have an immune basis. It was originally suggested that the insulin resistance of NZO mice might be due to an antagonist to the action of insulin2. We now report that NZO serum contains a globulin, probably an autoantibody, which inhibits insulin binding and indirectly immunoprecipitates the solubilised insulin receptor.
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HARRISON, L., ITIN, A. A possible mechanism for insulin resistance and hyperglycaemia in NZO mice. Nature 279, 334–336 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1038/279334a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/279334a0
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