Of Mice Not Men? Actions of Interleukin-6 on Glucose Tolerance

In mice, interleukin-6 (IL-6) improves glucose tolerance via stimulation of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) secretion. In this issue of Cell Metabolism, Lang Lehrskov et al. (2018) demonstrate that IL-6 infusion has GLP-1-dependent and -independent actions with opposing effects on glucose tolerance, resulting in an overall improvement in healthy male volunteers but no improvement in male patients with diabetes. In mice, interleukin-6 (IL-6) improves glucose tolerance via stimulation of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) secretion. In this issue of Cell Metabolism, Lang Lehrskov et al. (2018) demonstrate that IL-6 infusion has GLP-1-dependent and -independent actions with opposing effects on glucose tolerance, resulting in an overall improvement in healthy male volunteers but no improvement in male patients with diabetes.