Research Article Details
Article ID: | A13640 |
PMID: | 29859544 |
Source: | Br J Nutr |
Title: | Do inositol supplements enhance phosphatidylinositol supply and thus support endoplasmic reticulum function? |
Abstract: | This review attempts to explain why consuming extra myoinositol (Ins), an essential component of membrane phospholipids, is often beneficial for patients with conditions characterised by insulin resistance, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. For decades we assumed that most human diets provide an adequate Ins supply, but newer evidence suggests that increasing Ins intake ameliorates several disorders, including polycystic ovary syndrome, gestational diabetes, metabolic syndrome, poor sperm development and retinopathy of prematurity. Proposed explanations often suggest functional enhancement of minor facets of Ins Biology such as insulin signalling through putative inositol-containing 'mediators', but offer no explanation for this selectivity. It is more likely that eating extra Ins corrects a deficiency of an abundant Ins-containing cell constituent, probably phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns). Much of a cell's PtdIns is in ER membranes, and an increase in ER membrane synthesis, enhancing the ER's functional capacity, is often an important part of cell responses to ER stress. This review: (a) reinterprets historical information on Ins deficiency as describing a set of events involving a failure of cells adequately to adapt to ER stress; (b) proposes that in the conditions that respond to dietary Ins there is an overstretching of Ins reserves that limits the stressed ER's ability to make the 'extra' PtdIns needed for ER membrane expansion; and (c) suggests that eating Ins supplements increases the Ins supply to Ins-deficient and ER-stressed cells, allowing them to make more PtdIns and to expand the ER membrane system and sustain ER functions. |
DOI: | 10.1017/S0007114518000946 |

Strategy ID | Therapy Strategy | Synonyms | Therapy Targets | Therapy Drugs | |
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S01 | Improve insulin resistance | insulin sensitizer; insulin resistance; glucose tolerance | Biguanide: increases 5-AMP activated protein kinase signaling; SGLT-2 inhibitor; Thiazalidinedione: selective PPAR-γ agonists; GLP-1 agonist | Metformin; Empagliflozin; Canagliflozin; Rosiglitazone; Pioglitazone; Liraglutide | Details |
Target ID | Target Name | GENE | Action | Class | UniProtKB ID | Entry Name |
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Diseases ID | DO ID | Disease Name | Definition | Class | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
I04 | 1459 | Hypothyroidism | A thyroid gland disease which involves an underproduction of thyroid hormone. https://medlineplus.gov/hypothyroidism.html | disease of anatomical entity/ endocrine system disease/ thyroid gland disease | Details |
I05 | 9352 | Type 2 diabetes mellitus | A diabetes that is characterized by chronic hyperglycaemia with disturbances of carbohydrate, fat and protein metabolism resulting from defects in insulin secretion, insulin action, or both. A diabetes mellitus that is characterized by high blood sugar, insulin resistance, and relative lack of insulin. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diabetes, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diabetes_mellitus_type_2 | disease of metabolism/inherited metabolic disorder/ carbohydrate metabolic disorder/glucose metabolism disease/diabetes/ diabetes mellitus | Details |
Drug ID | Drug Name | Type | DrugBank ID | Targets | Category | Latest Progress | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
D258 | Omega 3 PUFA | Chemical drug | DB11133 | PPARG ligand; PPARA activator | Hypolipidemic drug | Under clinical trials | Details |
D328 | Serine | Chemical drug | DB00133 | SRR | Improve insulin resistance | Under clinical trials | Details |
D080 | Citrulline | Chemical drug | DB00155 | -- | -- | Under clinical trials | Details |
D182 | Insulin | Biological drug | DB00030 | INSR agonist; CPE modulator&product of | -- | Under clinical trials | Details |
D125 | Epanova | Chemical drug | DB11133 | PPARG ligand; PPARA activator | Enhance lipid metabolism | Under clinical trials | Details |