Taurine reduces apoptosis mediated by endoplasmic reticulum stress in islet β-cells induced by high-fat and -glucose diets

Poor eating habits, especially high-fat and -glucose diets intake, can lead to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in islet β-cells, insulin resistance, and islet β-cell dysfunction and cause islet β-cell apoptosis, which leads to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Taurine is a crucial amino acid in the human body. In this study, we aimed to explore the mechanism through which taurine reduces glycolipid toxicity. INS-1 islet β-cell lines were cultured with a high concentration of fat and glucose. SD rats were fed a high-fat and -glucose diet. MTS, Transmission electron microscopy, Flow cytometry, Hematoxylin-eosin, TUNEL, Western blotting analysis and other methods were used to detect relevant indicators. The research found that taurine increases the cell activity, reduces the apoptosis rate, alleviates the structural changes of ER under high-fat and -glucose exposure models. In addition, taurine improves blood lipid content and islets pathological changes, regulates the relative protein expression in ER stress and apoptosis, increases the insulin sensitivity index (HOMA-IS), and reduces the insulin resistance index (HOMAC-IR) of SD rats fed with a high-fat and -glucose diet.