Oral drug for type 1 diabetes patients?
Insulin injection therapy for stabilizing blood glucose levels in type 1 diabetic patients has been established as an unchanging treatment for regarding 100 years. The device used has evolved, but the style of injection itself has not changed, and the patient has to be forced to put a syringe on himself. However, research is underway that will drastically change this notion.
Approaches to supplement insulin with drinking pills have so far been studied all over the world. The biggest challenge is that insulin is not absorbed into the blood and does not reach the liver, just as insulin is digested and broken down in the stomach. But researchers at the University of British Columbia have announced that they can solve this problem in a surprising way.
The new approach takes insulin by mouth as a tablet, but dissolves it between the gums and the cheek wall rather than swallowing it. It is known that when the tablet melts, insulin is absorbed from the thin membrane in the mouth and reaches the liver without passing through the stomach. In a test using rats, insulin reached the liver, not the stomach. Immediate action like insulin injection is also said to be a big feature.
It has yet to go through clinical trials before commercialization, and it does not mean that diabetic patients will be immediately freed from insulin injections. However, if it is realized, it is expected to be used more easily and inexpensively. Related content this placecan be checked in
Reporter Jung Yong-hwan
A bread fanatic who turned to a writer following working for a large company, waking up to technology. We want to share the joy of meeting new technologies and startups with our readers.