L-cysteine a Possible Therapy for Type-2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is estimated to affect 24 million or 11% of people in the U.S. aged 20 or older. There is no cure for the disease, but prescription drugs can and dietary intervention help manage serum glucose levels although not all patients can get serum glucose well under control.

S.K. Jain of LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport, LA reported that L-cysteine supplements, which are relatively cheap, could be used as an adjuvant therapy for type 2 diabetes. Both in animals and people with type 2 diabetes, cysteine-rich whey protein has been demonstrated to be able to improve glucose metabolism.

Additionally, animal studies showed that L-cysteine supplements or compounds with cysteine moiety also improved glucose metabolism.

What L-cysteine does according to the author is to up-regulate the insulin-dependent signaling cascade of glucose metabolism.

Jain stated that, "Further studies are needed to examine whether clinical interventions using L-cysteine as an adjuvant therapy indeed help to control glycemia and vascular inflammation in the diabetic patient population."

Can J Physiol Pharmacol. 2012 Aug;90(8):1061-4. Epub 2012 Jul 11.