POMC and type 2 diabetes mellitus: In patients with type 2 diabetes the hypothalamic pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity appears increased in most studies: elevation of ACTH [35, 36], of basal [35, 37, 38] and suppressed serum cortisol (after dexamethasone test) [39, 40] and of late-night salivary cortisol levels [41] have been reported.