Researchers develop pills to prevent type 1 diabetes

Since it can be taken orally, it is much easier for the patient to adhere to the treatment regimen. (CREDIT: Creative Commons)

Yale University researchers have developed an oral diabetes drug that controls insulin levels while reversing the inflammatory effects of the disease.

The results were recently published in natural biomedical engineering.

Developed by Tarek Fahmi, an associate professor of biomedical engineering and immunobiology, the drug has two important advantages over standard diabetes treatment. Since it can be taken orally, it is much easier for the patient to adhere to the treatment regimen. It also simultaneously addresses three major diabetes concerns: helping control immediate blood glucose levels, restoring pancreatic function, and restoring normal immunity in the pancreatic environment.

“What excites me about this is that it is a two-pronged approach,” Fahmy said. “It promotes normal metabolism and also corrects immune defects in the long term.”

He notes that it’s all done in a nanocarrier made up of materials our own bodies produce – bile acids – which means the carrier itself has therapeutic effects that work with the loaded agent to restore normal metabolism in the short term and restore immune function. competence. in the long term.

Similar stories:

“This combined approach makes this system a promising new therapy for autoimmune diseases in general,” he said.

One of the main obstacles to creating a successful oral drug for diabetes is that the drug breaks down in the patient’s gastrointestinal tract. The nanoparticle, however, protects the insulin by delivering it to the pancreas, where it unloads the drug.

However, nanoparticles are more than just a delivery vehicle. It is made from polymerized ursodeoxycholic acid, a bile acid. In its more natural monomer form, it has been used to make drugs to dissolve gallstones and liver stones. However, it is not very effective for treating diabetes.

Design parameters and effects of polymerized bile acid NPs: Summary. Attributes of the pUDCA platform responsible for enhanced biotransport, restoration of metabolic control, and immunomodulatory mechanisms. After screening for optimal BA polymers, a comprehensive assessment of biodistribution and the mechanisms responsible for biodistribution was elucidated. Functional response

the result of such mechanistic improvements is shown in the last column, which describes studies on the prevention and treatment of DM1, as well as a study on the toxicology of pBA NPs. (CREDIT: MIT)

However, Fami’s research team polymerized bile acid, which increased its ability to bind to receptors critical to metabolism, making it much more effective in treating diabetes.

Yale scientists have developed a new nanoparticulate drug carrier that not only can safely deliver insulin to the pancreas, but the coating itself has therapeutic benefits. (CREDIT: Yale Biomedical Engineering)

In their trials in mice, the nanoparticles reversed inflammation, restored metabolic functions and prolonged their survival, while the load of particles restored insulin levels.

“So you’re actually treating the disease while maintaining insulin levels,” Fahmy said.

Mechanisms of pUDCA biodistribution, accumulation in the pancreas and immunomodulation after oral administration. (CREDIT: Yale Biomedical Engineering)

The drug delivery system is also the backbone of Toralgen, a biotech company co-founded by Fahmy.

“The potential is also huge for diabetes and other disease states,” Fahmy said. “I hope this technical development will be used to develop immediate solutions to the complex problems of autoimmunity, cancer, allergies and infections.”

To learn more about science and technology, visit our New Innovations section at The bright side of the news.

Note. Materials provided above by Yale Biomedical Engineering. Content can be edited for style and length.

Do you like such pleasant stories? Receive Brighter Side of News Newsletter.