D-CHIRO-INOSITOL – ITS FUNCTIONAL ROLE IN INSULIN ACTION

Insulin resistance seems to be a prominent feature of the Polycystic Ovaries Syndrome. Consequences derived of this condition are, among others, risk of development of type II diabetes and hyperandrogenism (increment of testosterone release). In addition to this, there is another problem which is obesity; a lot of women suffering PCOS are overweight or obese and obesity itself induces to insulin resistance.  According to Kai I. Cheang, Paulina Essah, John E. Nestler  “there is a form of insulin resistance that is intrinsic to the disorder and is present even in lean woman with PCOS

DCI has shown to play a major role in the insulin signal transduction as a second messenger. To put it in simple words, our body transform into glucose some of the food that we eat (mostly carbohydrates). This glucose goes into our blood stream to be converted into energy. When glucose level rises in our blood stream our liver releases insulin. That is when DCI comes into scene. DCI has been previously attached to another molecule, inositolphosphoglycan (IPG), turning into DCI-IPG and waiting to respond to the hormone insulin. When this conversion fails to happen, our body is unable to convert sugar into energy resulting in constant high levels of insulin.

In the study “Ovulatory and metabolic effects of D-Chiro-Inositol in the polycystic ovary syndrome” carried out by John E. Nestler, Daniela J. Jakubowicz, Paula Reamer, Ronald D. Gunn and Geoffrey Allan, and published in The New England Journal of Medicine dated April 1999, they stated that “Women with the polycystic ovary syndrome have insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia, possibly because of a deficiency of a D-chiro-inositol–containing phosphoglycan that mediates the action of insulin. We hypothesized that the administration of D-chiro-inositol would replenish stores of the mediator and improve insulin sensitivity“.  According to this research, “A deficiency of the D-chiro-inositol phosphoglycan mediator of the action of insulin may result in resistance to insulin“. Based on their observation they suggest “the administration of D-chiro-inositol, which is then presumably used in the formation of the active D-chiro-inositol phosphoglycan mediator, may increase insulin sensitivity and improve the action of insulin in insulin-resistance subjects“. They concluded that “D-chiro-inositol improves ovulatory function and several metabolic abnormalities related to insulin resistance in women with the polycystic ovary syndrome. These observations also suggest that D-chiro-inositol could be used to treat the polycystic ovary syndrome and that D-chiro-inositol may prove useful in the treatment of other disorders that are pathophysiologically related to insulin resistance“.

There is another study which points out the importance of the DCI-IPG (d-chiroinositol attached to the inositolphosphoglycan molecule) with positive results in the use of DCI as beneficial for the symptoms of  PCOS, “A paradox: The Role of Inositolphosphoglycans in mediating insulin sensitivity and Hyperandrogenism in the Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome” by Kai I. Cheang, Paulina Essah, John E. Nestler, where they conclude that  “IPGs play a major role in both ovarian and testosterone biosynthesis and insulin resistance in PCOS. Deficiency of DCI-IPG may be in part responsible for the insulin resistance in PCOS. DCI administration ameliorates insulin resistance, hyperandrogenemia and improves ovulation in this disorder”.

The results of these studies provide scientific evidence that a supplement of DCI could improve the symptoms of PCOS, offering a natural alternative for combating the effects of this syndrome suffered for many women.

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