ATP-sensitive potassium channelopathies: focus on insulin secretion

ATP-sensitive potassium (K-ATP) channels, so named because they are inhibited by intracellular ATP, play key physiological roles in many tissues. In pancreatic beta cells, these channels regulate glucose-dependent insulin secretion and serve as the target for sulfonylurea drugs used to treat type 2 diabetes. This review focuses on insulin secretory disorders, such as congenital hyperinsulinemia and neonatal diabetes, that result from mutations in K-ATP channel genes. It also considers the extent to which defective regulation of K-ATP channel activity contributes to the etiology of type 2 diabetes.