Yonsei Med J.  2005 Aug;46(4):532-538. 10.3349/ymj.2005.46.4.532.

Determination of Urinary Myo-/Chiro-Inositol Ratios from Korean Diabetes Patients

• Jung TS
• Hahm JR
• Kim JJ
• Jung JH
• Kang MY
• Moon SW
• Lee KW
• Kim HC
• Lee JD
• Kim JH
• Kim DR
• Chung SI

• KMID: 1716524
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3349/ymj.2005.46.4.532

Abstract

Of two major forms (myo- and chiro-inositol) of inositols, only chiro-inositol enhances the activity of proteins involved in intracellular glucose metabolism. This study aims to determine the urinary myo-/chiro-inositol ratio in type 1 and type 2 diabetes patients and compare its ratio with the normal control group. The 24-hour urinary myo- and chiro-inositols in 71 Korean diabetes patients and 39 control subjects have been quantified using high-performance liquid chromatography, and their ratios have been evaluated as indices of insulin resistance. The level of 24-hour urinary myo-inositol was significantly higher in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes than with the control group, whereas the urinary chiro-inositol in type 1 or type 2 diabetes was lower than that in normal subjects. The myo-/chiro-inositol ratio in diabetes patients was higher than that in the control group. Twenty four-hour urinary myo-/ chiro-inositol ratios were significantly elevated in type 1 and type 2 diabetes patients compared to the control group, suggesting that a high ratio of urinary myo-/chiro- inositol in type 2 diabetes patients might be used for an index of insulin resistance.

Keyword

Myo-inositol; chiro-inositol; inositol; insulin resistance; diabetes mellitus

MeSH Terms

Adult
Aged
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1/*urine
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/*urine
Female
Humans
Inositol/*urine
Insulin Resistance
Male
Middle Aged

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 Chemical structures of chiro-inositol and myo-inositol. The myo-inositol is epimerized at the carbon 1 position to form chiro-inositol.

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