Diabetes treatment

A research team from Helmholtz Munich, the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), and Novo Nordisk has developed a unique hormone combination for the prospective future treatment of type 2 diabetes. Tesaglitazar and GLP-1, two drugs that reduce blood sugar, were combined by researchers to develop a brand-new, very potent treatment.



Diabetes treatment
Helmholtz Munich, the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD)


How research undergoes

The Tesaglitazar only enters the tissue with GLP-1 receptors, hence combining it with GLP-1 has this advantage. This improves the impact on sugar metabolism while reducing tesaglitazar negative effects. The novel medication has already undergone successful animal testing by researchers. In the journal Nature Metabolism, the study was only just released.

Tesaglitazar improves type 2 diabetes patients' glucose and lipid metabolism. It works by interacting with two receptors in the cell nucleus to promote insulin sensitivity. Phase 3 clinical studies have shown this. Tesaglitazar, however, might cause harm to the kidneys as a side effect.

The researchers used a cunning method to use the medication therapeutically: they biochemically coupled tesaglitazar with the gastrointestinal hormone GLP-1. The combination medication is therefore limited to cells and tissues with GLP-1 receptors.

According to PD Dr. Timo Müller, corresponding author, director of the Institute of Diabetes and Obesity, and scientist at DZD, "this trick allowed us to combine the blood sugar-reducing effects of GLP-1 and tesaglitazar into a single highly effective molecule while keeping tesaglitazar away from tissues that it could damage."


The new medication enhances sugar metabolism and glucose tolerance.

The new medication has already undergone successful testing in animal studies, according to Professor Kerstin Stemmer, one of the study's lead authors. The sugar metabolism of obese and diabetic male mice improved to a far greater extent compared with treatment using only the GLP-1 hormone or tesaglitazar alone - and with no damaging adverse effects to the liver or kidney.

The drug had a very strong effect in improving glucose tolerance. The new medication only needed to be taken in very small amounts to enhance glucose metabolism over time.

Now, scientists want to find out if this medication may also be used to treat type 2 diabetes in people and if biochemical adjustments can be made to this new combination therapy to increase its effectiveness even further.

Reference, Scitechdaily