Remarkably, ablation of astrocytic Pdk2 in the hypothalamus attenuated diabetes-induced local inflammation, characterized by increased levels of the inflammatory cytokines Tnf-α, Il-1β, and Il-6 mRNA (Fig. 8b), and proliferation and activation of GFAP-positive astrocytes and Iba-1-positive microglia (Fig. 8c). The gene discussed is PDK2; the disease is diabetes mellitus.