Could Your Saliva Predict Diabetes Risk? Study Finds Out
A new Cornell University study brings additional clarity to the relationship between Type 2 diabetes and genes that express a salivary enzyme that breaks down starch.
It was previously known that people with more copies of the genes that express salivary amylase (called AMY1) produce more salivary amylase enzyme. The new paper, published in PLOS One, supports the idea that having more copies of the AMY1 gene may be protective against Type 2 diabetes, though additional long-term studies are needed to prove the theory.
If researchers do eventually prove a clear association between AMY1 copy number and diabetes, it could lead to genetically testing people at birth to predict their susceptibility.
Researchers collected measurements from study participants of amylase activity very early in the morning after fasting and in the evening. They found that morning readings were much lower than they were in the evenings.
When they compared participants, they found that salivary amylase activity was higher for each additional copy of AMY1 in those with Type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, compared to those without either.
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