From the Triumvirate to the Ominous Octet: A New Paradigm for the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Insulin resistance in muscle and liver and β-cell failure represent the core pathophysiologic defects in type 2 diabetes. It now is recognized that the β-cell failure occurs much earlier and is more severe than previously thought. Subjects in the upper tertile of impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) are maximally/near-maximally insulin resistant and have lost over 80% of their β-cell function. In addition to the muscle, liver, and β-cell (triumvirate), the fat cell (accelerated lipolysis), gastrointestinal tract (incretin deficiency/resistance), α-cell (hyperglucagonemia), kidney (increased glucose reabsorption), and brain (insulin resistance) all play important roles in the development of glucose intolerance in type 2 diabetic individuals. Collectively, these eight players comprise the ominous octet and dictate that: 1 ) multiple drugs used in combination will be required to correct the multiple pathophysiological defects, 2 ) treatment should be based upon reversal of known pathogenic abnormalities and not simply on reducing the A1C, and 3 ) therapy must be started early to prevent/slow the progressive β-cell failure that already is well established in IGT subjects. A treatment paradigm shift is recommended in which combination therapy is initiated with diet/exercise, metformin (which improves insulin sensitivity and has antiatherogenic effects), a thiazolidinedione (TZD) (which improves insulin sensitivity, preserves β-cell function, and exerts antiatherogenic effects), and exenatide (which preserves β-cell function and promotes weight loss). Sulfonylureas are not recommended because, after an initial improvement in glycemic control, they are associated with a progressive rise in A1C and progressive loss of β-cell function. The natural history of type 2 diabetes has been well described in multiple populations (1–16) (rev. in (17,18). Individuals destined to develop type 2 diabetes inherit a set of genes from their parents that make their tissues resistant to insulin (1,16,19–24). In liver, the insulin resistance is manifested by …