New drug holds promise for Type 1 diabetes
POSTED August 30, 2011 - 14:05 | POSTED BY Neharika Sabharwal
Last edited by Simmy Mishra on August 30, 2011 - 15:49
Type 1 diabetes is a condition in which the pancreas' insulin producing beta cells are destroyed by the body's immune system.
This renders the pancreas incapable of naturally producing insulin, a hormone that controls blood sugar levels.
People with type 1 diabetes must take insulin shots several times a day to survive, or else blood sugar will spike to dangerous levels which can have fatal consequences.
New drug codenamed DiaPep277
Now, an international team of researchers have developed a new drug codenamed DiaPep277.
The innovative drug has the potential to modulate the immune system and prevent it from attacking the insulin-producing pancreatic cells, thereby reducing the need for injected insulin in people diagnosed with the disease.
Dr Eleanor Kennedy, spokeswoman for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation stated, “The research on this shows it may well be possible that patients could cope without the need for any insulin injections. This is very exciting.”
DiaPep277 arrests progression of Type 1 diabetes
Researchers are optimistic that DiaPep277 can be used as a preventive treatment for those at high risk for autoimmune diabetes.
According to them, if patients are treated at the onset of the disease with DiaPep277, it can arrest the progression of the disease by blocking the destruction of the important insulin making pancreatic cells.
As a result the pancreas will again able to produce enough insulin to support the body.
Other benefits
Apart from a decline in the patient’s insulin dependence and prevention of the deterioration of disease, treatment with DiaPep 277is likely to offer many other medical benefits.
These include improved metabolic control and reduction of diabetic complications like heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, blindness, kidney disease, nervous system damage, and amputations.
Dr. Shlomo Dagan, of Andromeda Biotech in Israel, who is behind the research trails stated, “We have proved in earlier trials that our compound stops the immune system attacking the pancreas.
“There is evidence to suggest that using the drug over a period of time, maybe a couple of years, will allow the pancreas to recover enough to make more insulin. In that situation the patient could stop injecting insulin.”
DiaPep277 is likely to be available for commercial use within three years. The drug is currently being tested at 140 centres in the UK, including London’s King’s College Hospital, Europe, North America, South Africa and Israel.
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