Researchers at UCLA have identified three inflammatory cytokines that will serve as molecular markers that will predict diabetes in still-healthy individuals:

• tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-á)
• interleukin-6 (IL-6)
• high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP)

Each one of these cytokines (or messenger molecules) may be one of the causes of type 2 diabetes and will now serve as early biological markers.

The three identified markers are the result of the first large scale, multiethnic study of its kind.

The findings, reported in the August 15 issue of the journal Archives of Internal Medicine (one of the JAMA and Archives Journals) imply a blood test in the future that will predict the incidences of diabetes in healthy individuals.

Find more details from UCLA.