6 replies to this topic

[InquilineKea]

metformin suppresses gluconeogenesis. shouldn't gluconeogenesis be highest when blood sugar is lowest? i know that this may be dysregulated in diabetics, but this would also make it seem like metformin's effects would be strongest when glucose levels are lowest. Yet, we know that hypoglycemia is a rare side effect of metformin.

[drtom]

I could be wrong but I assumed that gluconeogenesis would take place when substrate concentrations were high (irrespective of plasma glucose).
I am a non-diabetic and I have been taking 500mg metformin/day for a couple of years now. It certainly drops my blood glucose levels.
I tend to take it with a large evening meal to blunt gluconeogenesis after the meal.
However, the primary reason I take it is to inhibit mTOR.

[InquilineKea]

Hmm.. good idea about mTOR inhibition. Where do you get your metformin from? I'm considering getting it now.

[DePaw]

It's a common misconception that gluconeogenesis changes depends on what you eat, it's actually a low and constant process, but it is increased in diabetics.

Source: http://www.ketotic.o...es-it-turn.html

[drtom]

Hmm.. good idea about mTOR inhibition. Where do you get your metformin from? I'm considering getting it now.

I'm an Australian and you need a doctor's script to get it here (which they won't give you unless you're diabetic or pre-diabetic.)
However, I have business in Russia, where you can just walk into any pharmacy ("Apteka" in Russia) and get it over the counter.
So I stock up whenever I'm over there. Also get my wife to bring some with her when she comes back if I don't go.

[Chupo]

If you can't get metformin you may want to look into bereberine. It's a natural alkaloid that has been shown to be as effective as metformin. It acts in the same way, by activating AMPK and inhibiting mTOR,

Here's a research paper: Clinical Applications for Berberine

Other research regarding cancer and longevity: Berberine suppresses gero-conversion from cell cycle arrest to senescence

Berberine Prolongs Life Span and Stimulates Locomotor Activity of Drosophila melanogaster


Berberine induces G1 arrest and apoptosis in human glioblastoma T98G cells through mitochondrial/caspases pathway.

More references cited at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berberine

[Michael]

(IK, why is this in the CR Forum Topic?)

metformin suppresses gluconeogenesis. shouldn't gluconeogenesis be highest when blood sugar is lowest? i know that this may be dysregulated in diabetics, but this would also make it seem like metformin's effects would be strongest when glucose levels are lowest. Yet, we know that hypoglycemia is a rare side effect of metformin.

Type II diabetics are insensitive to insulin. One of the things that insulin does is suppress gluconeogenesis. As a result, they're actively pumping more sugar out of their liver even during the postprandial period. (It may also involve mitochondrial Complex I, though that's a contested hypothesis). Insulin-sensitive people don't do this, so don't gain much or any benefit of this particular effect.

Edited by Michael, 26 January 2014 - 01:57 AM.