Prevention of diabetes: let's consider the role of estrogens!

The estrogen pathway is now considered as an importar metabolic modulator and both experimental and clinical dat clearly demonstrate the key role of these sex steroid hormone in glucose homeostasis. Estrogen administration exerts a significant protection fror type 2 diabetes by preventing android obesity and insulion resistance, but also through direct beneficial actions on the endocrine pancreas. Indeed, estrogens are recognized t promote the survival and to enhance the functions of beta cell. These protective effects of estrogens mainly result from the, activation of estrogen receptor alpha (ERa) which is tht, considered as a promising therapeutic target. The development of selective ERa modulators with maintaine protective properties on insulin sensitivity and insulin secretion but devoid of proliferative side effects on reproductive tissue such as the uterus and the breast, would thus open nel perspectives for the prevention and treatment of type diabetes.