They've discovered the human pancreas has its own internal clock, and diabetes can result when the clock malfunctions, researchers have said.

A university release on Friday said that a Northwestern University study found the circadian rhythm of insulin-secreting cells in the pancreas, known as beta-cells, regulated the productions of insulin.

Dr. Joe Bass, associate professor of medicine at the university's Feinberg School of Medicine, said, "This is the first evidence of how the circadian clock may affect the development of diabetes."

Bass said, "The biological programs in animals for harvesting energy, much like the photosynthesis of plants, are under control of the clock. Our findings will help us figure out the causes of glucose abnormalities, but we still have a lot to learn."

Bass, an endocrinologist trained in molecular genetics, said, "The variation we see in insulin secretion in humans and susceptibility to diabetes is likely related to this clock mechanism."

The study further said that the body's primary clock resides in the brain, but local biological clocks are found in tissue throughout the body, including the pancreas, lungs, liver, heart and skeletal muscles. (With inputs from Agencies)