Diabetes is a condition in which the patient has high blood sugar levels. This disease affects nearly 30 million people in the U.S. alone. There are many ways to cure the disease. Still, the scientists are trying to find the best way to cure this disease. Thus this blind cavefish found in Mexico comes to mind to find out a cure for the disease. The secret cure for diabetes is Blind Cave Fish.
Researchers at Harvard are studying the fish. They are trying to learn how they may be able to combat the condition in humans. The findings have recently been published in the journal ‘Nature’. The findings show that the fish have a unique way of adapting and regulating their blood sugar levels.
These fishes have a high blood sugar level and insatiable appetites but still, live a very healthy life. So scientists are trying to find out how the fish do so. Maybe the blind cavefish may have the cure for diabetes.
By using a gene sequencing tool called the CRISPR, the findings prove that the fish have genes that are resistive to insulin. Insulin is a substance that converts blood sugar into energy. Thus keeping our blood sugar levels under control.
Diabetes type 2 usually occurs only when the insulin secreted by the body is not enough or does not function correctly. Thus resulting in high blood sugar levels.
The fish also experience high blood sugar levels but that does not affect the fish. A previous study on fish has found that the fish has a gene that helps it store fat for times when food is scarce. Though this condition is very dangerous in humans but is very helpful for the fish. So that the fish can easily survive in caves that do not contain an abundance of algae which are their primary food source.
The researchers also compared the fish to a river fish with a sight that also has the gene resisting insulin. Both fishes have an equally long lifespan. Hybrids of both fish were made in the lab. The gene resistant to insulin was also in the hybrids.
The fish have sugars but no sugar-coated proteins, thus even without insulin they never suffer from diabetes. In the case of us humans, we have sugars as well as sugar-coated proteins and we need insulin to keep our sugar level balanced.
So through better understanding and study, we may be able to find a permanent cure for diabetes from these blind cavefish.
Thanks for the wonderful article