The structure of a part of the insulin receptor, which, until now, has remained a mystery, is no more a mystery as Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers have uncovered it.

The hormone insulin binds to the insulin receptor, which is a large protein on the surface of cells. Usage of glucose in a human body is controlled by insulin. It is important to establish how insulin interacts with the insulin receptor for development of treatments for diabetes.

Dr Mike Lawrence, from the WEHI's Structural Biology division, said, “By understanding how insulin binds and transmits messages into the cell we will be in a better position to design compounds that mimic insulin and could be used to treat diabetes.”

The WEHI team is trying to figure out the structure of the related Type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor, to which insulin-like growth factors bind apart from determining the three-dimensional structure of the insulin receptor.