Epigenetics of diabetes Type 2 have shown that miRNAs have pivotal roles in many different gene regulatory pathways. A subset of miRNAs has been shown to be involved in metabolic regulation of glucose homeostasis and in epigenetics of diabetes type 2. Pancreatic islet-specific miR-375 inhibits insulin secretion in mouse pancreatic β-cells by inhibiting the expression of the protein myotrophin. An overexpression of miR-375 can completely suppress glucose-induced insulin secretion, while inhibition of native miR-375 will increase insulin secretion. In another study, increasing the level of miR-9, a different miRNA, resulted in a severe defect in glucose-stimulated insulin release. This happens because miR-9 down-regulated the transcription
Lifestyle causes of diabetes mellitus type 2 and 2000s is believed to have led to the increase in type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents. Studies have shown that a reduction in sleep is associated with a significant increase in the incidence of type 2 diabetes. This could account for the increased incidence of diabetes in developed countries in the last decades, since "the causes of this pandemic are not fully explained by changes in traditional lifestyle factors such as diet and physical activity", and "one behavior that seems to have developed during the past few decades and has become highly prevalent, particularly amongst Americans, is sleep