A collaborative team of chemists, polymer scientists, and drug delivery experts from Zhejiang University and elsewhere has made a significant breakthrough in diabetes treatment.
They have developed a new type of “smart” insulin, which has shown remarkable results in regulating blood glucose levels in animal models.
Published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, their research details the creation, mechanism, and effectiveness of this innovative insulin when tested on diabetic mice and minipigs.
Type I diabetes is a lifelong condition where the pancreas produces little to no insulin, requiring patients to manage their condition with diet modifications and regular insulin injections.
These injections, often multiple times a day, can be painful and challenging due to skin hardening at the injection sites.
Addressing these challenges, the research team developed a modified insulin that intelligently interacts with the body’s chemistry. This smart insulin contains gluconic acid, which transforms into a complex upon injection.
This complex formation causes the insulin to be trapped within a natural polymer, altering its release based on the body’s glucose levels. It responds dynamically, releasing more insulin when needed (like after meals) and less otherwise.
The team’s testing involved three minipigs and five mice, all genetically modified to have diabetes. Among the minipigs, one received a lower dose, while the other two received higher doses of this smart insulin.
Over the subsequent weeks, the minipig with the lower dose demonstrated the most stable glucose regulation compared to those on higher doses and the control group receiving standard daily insulin injections.
These findings indicate a promising new direction in treating Type I diabetes.
The smart insulin’s ability to regulate blood glucose levels for up to a week after just one injection could significantly improve the quality of life for diabetic patients, reducing the pain and inconvenience associated with frequent injections.
The researchers are planning to continue their work by conducting further animal trials. If these continue to yield positive results, the next exciting step will be moving into human clinical trials.
This development could represent a paradigm shift in diabetes management, offering a more convenient and effective treatment option for millions of individuals living with this chronic condition.
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The research findings can be found in Nature Biomedical Engineering.
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