Molecular structure of glycogen in diabetic liver

• Published in: Glycoconjugate journal Vol. 32; no. 3-4; pp. 113 - 118
• Main Authors: Deng, Bin, Sullivan, Mitchell A., Li, Jialun, Tan, Xinle, Zhu, Chengjun, Schulz, Benjamin L., Gilbert, Robert G.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.05.2015; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Animals; Biochemistry; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Chromatography; Chromatography, Gel; Diabetes; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental - metabolism; Female; Glycogen - chemistry; Life Sciences; Liver; Liver - chemistry; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; Molecular structure; Pathology; Proteins; Short Communication; Type 2 diabetes; Size-exclusion chromatography; Glycogen; mice
• ISSN: 0282-0080; 1573-4986; 1573-4986
• DOI: 10.1007/s10719-015-9578-6

Liver glycogen (involved in maintaining blood-sugar levels) is a hyperbranched glucose polymer containing β particles (diameter ~20 nm), which can form composite α particles (diameter ~50–300 nm), and includes a small but significant amount of bound protein. Size distributions of glycogen from livers of healthy and diabetic mice were examined using size-exclusion chromatography with two separate eluents: aqueous eluent and dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) eluent. Morphologies were examined with transmission electron microscopy. Diabetic glycogen (DG) exhibited many α particles in the mild water-based solvent, but in DMSO, which breaks H bonds, these degraded to β particles; α particles however were always present in healthy glycogen (HG). This DG fragility shows the binding of β into α particles is different in HG and DG. The diabetic α particle fragility may be involved with the uncontrolled blood-sugar release symptomatic of diabetes: small β particles degrade more easily to glucose than α particles. This has implications for diabetes management.