To determine the relationship between insulin sensitivity and beta-cell function, we quantified the insulin sensitivity index using the minimal model in 93 relatively young, apparently healthy human subjects of varying degrees of obesity (55 male, 38 female; 18-44 yr of age; body mass index 19.5-52.2 kg/m2) and with fasting glucose levels < 6.4 mM. SI was compared with measures of body adiposity and beta-cell function. Although lean individuals showed a wide range of SI, body mass index and SI were related in a curvilinear manner (P < 0.0001) so that on average, an increase in body mass index was associated generally with a lower value for SI. The relationship between the SI and the beta-cell measures was more clearly curvilinear and reciprocal for fasting insulin (P < 0.0001), first-phase insulin response (AIRglucose; P < 0.0001), glucose potentiation slope (n = 56; P < 0.005), and beta-cell secretory capacity (AIRmax; n = 43; P < 0.0001). The curvilinear relationship between SI and the beta-cell measures could not be distinguished from a hyperbola, i.e., SI x beta-cell function = constant. This hyperbolic relationship described the data significantly better than a linear function (P < 0.05). The nature of this relationship is consistent with a regulated feedback loop control system such that for any difference in SI, a proportionate reciprocal difference occurs in insulin levels and responses in subjects with similar carbohydrate tolerance. We conclude that in human subjects with normal glucose tolerance and varying degrees of obesity, beta-cell function varies quantitatively with differences in insulin sensitivity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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The incretin effect reflects the actions of enteral stimuli to promote prandial insulin secretion. Impairment of this measure has been proposed as an early marker of β-cell dysfunction and described in T2D, IGT, and even obesity without IGT. We sought to determine the effects of obesity and diabetes on the incretin effect in young subjects with short exposures to metabolic abnormalities and a few other confounding medical conditions. Subjects with T2D (n = 10; 18.0 ± 0.4 yr) or NGT, either obese (n = 11; 17.7 ± 0.4 yr) or lean (n = 8; 26.5 ± 2.3 yr), had OGTT and iso-iv. The incretin effect was calculated as the difference in insulin secretion during these tests and was decreased ∼50% in both the NGT-Ob and T2D subjects relative to the NGT-Ln group. The T2D group had impaired glucose tolerance and insulin secretion during the OGTT, whereas the lean and obese NGT subjects had comparable glucose excursions and β-cell function. During the iso-iv test, the NGT-Ob subjects had significantly greater insulin secretion than the NGT-Ln and T2D groups. These findings demonstrate that in young subjects with early, well-controlled T2D the incretin effect is reduced, similar to what has been described in diabetic adults. The lower incretin effect calculated for the obese subjects with NGT is driven by a disproportionately greater insulin response to iv glucose and does not affect postprandial glucose regulation. These findings confirm that the incretin effect is an early marker of impaired insulin secretion in persons with abnormal glucose tolerance but suggest that in obese subjects with NGT the incretin effect calculation can be confounded by exaggerated insulin secretion to iv glucose.

Glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) is an insulinotropic hormone released after nutrient ingestion which is known to augment insulin secretion, inhibit glucagon release, and promote insulin-independent glucose disposition. To determine the overall effect of GLP-1 on glucose disposition after a meal we studied a group of healthy, conscious baboons before and after intragastric glucose administration during infusions of saline, and two treatments to eliminate the action of GLP-1: ( a ) exendin-