A simple injection of muscle tissue could control glucose in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Genetic modification of skeletal muscle and subsequent intramuscular implantation could increase blood sugar absorption and become an effective and long-lasting treatment for this pathology. “We took mice satellite cells and we genetically altered to overexpress GLUT4,” Hagit Shoyhet, researcher at the Levenberg lab of stem-cell and tissue engineering, Technion (Israel), said at the European Association for the study of Diabetes (EASD) 58th Annual Meeting.
Pancreatic β cells are the only cells in the body that produce insulin, and are the cells whose malfunctioning is the proximate cause of diabetes. Consequently, repairing or replacing β cells is one of the major goals of diabetes research. In type I diabetes, where the immune system destroys β cells, need to be replaced outright. In type II diabetes, β cells “disappear” in another way. There is ample evidence that under conditions of chronic high blood sugar, such cells dedifferentiate, becoming less β cell-like over time.
Researchers at Northwestern University and COUR Pharmaceutical Development Company Inc. have shown that biodegradable carboxylated poly(D,L-lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanoparticles containing encapsulated Ag (tolerance-inducing microparticles [TIMPs] or COUR nanoparticles [CNPs]) are able to prevent and treat type 1 diabetes (T1D) induced by transfer of monospecific diabetogenic CD4 and CD8 transgenic T cells to NOD.scid mice.
Lanzhou University and Tencent Technology (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd. have patented glucagon receptor (GCGR) antagonists reported to be useful for the treatment of diabetes and hyperglycemia.
More than 70% of individuals with diabetes develop some form of heart disease. Nonischemic diabetic heart disease (NiDHD) is a chronic complication characterized by ventricular dilation and hypertrophy, diastolic dysfunction, and decreased or preserved systolic function, and eventually may result in heart failure.
Akston Biosciences Corp. emerged from a successful small company that was sold to a pharma major. For Todd Zion, that’s a back-to-basics move that suits him just fine. Zion co-founded Smartcells Inc. in 2003 with technology developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The company went on to develop the once-daily injectable self-regulating insulin product, Smartinsulin, and sold it to Merck & Co. in what was at the time one of the largest preclinical pharmaceutical acquisitions ever.
Preserving beta-cell mass and expansion is a key point in diabetes. Prolonged hyperglycemia may lead to glucose toxicity, which impairs insulin production and secretion, promoting a cycle with increasing glucose concentrations that promote a decline of beta-cell function and eventually their death.
Insulet Corp. got the U.S. FDA’s nod to extend use of its Omnipod 5 automated insulin pump to children aged 2 years and up with type 1 diabetes. The expanded indication, just seven months after FDA cleared Omnipod 5 for patients 6 years and older, represents the first time a tubeless automated insulin delivery (AID) system has been authorized for use in children this young.
A phase II trial this week showed that combining the diabetes drug semaglutide (Novo Nordisk A/S) with a fixed-dose combination of Cagrisema (cagrilintide/semaglutide) led to “numerically higher” reductions in both HbA1c and body weight than either component alone. And on the preclinical side, researchers from the Novo Nordisk Research Center and the Helmholtz Diabetes Center reported that linking the dual PPAR activator tesaglitazar to GLP-1 improved glucose control in male mice. Both bits of news illustrate that GLP-1R agonists, which are also called incretin mimetics and GLP-1 analogs, are likely to continue their success across multiple areas of medical care.
Med-tech manufacturers can expect the market for diabetes care-related products, ranging from insulin pens to smart devices, to rise in India. India already has the second-largest number of adults with diabetes globally, after China.
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