Revolutionary Smart Insulin Developed: The Game-Changer for Type 1 Diabetes Management

Scientists have developed the “holy grail” of insulin, which responds to changes in blood sugar levels in real time and could treat millions of people worldwide who suffer from diabetes. – sugar type 1 change.

Currently, patients must be given synthetic insulin 10 times a day to survive. Constant fluctuations between high and low blood sugar levels can cause physical health problems in the short and long term, and trying to keep blood sugar levels stable can also affect their mental health.

Scientists have found a solution that experts say is as close to curing type 1 diabetes as any drug treatment: smart insulin that is inactive in the body and only works when which will be needed. Researchers in the US, Australia and China have succeeded in designing a new insulin that resembles the body’s natural response to changes in blood sugar levels and responds immediately and in real time.

Insulin still stabilizes blood sugar levels when it enters the body, but once it has done its job, it usually cannot help with future fluctuations. This means that the patient must take more insulin within a few hours.

The new glucose-responsive insulin (GRI) only works when there is a level of sugar in the blood to prevent hyperglycemia (high blood glucose). They are switched off again when levels fall below a certain level, avoiding hypoglycemia (low blood glucose). Experts believe that in the future, patients will only need insulin once a week.

The scientists behind smart insulin have received a multi-million pound grant to speed up its development. The funding comes from the Great Type 1 Diabetes Challenge, a partnership between Diabetes UK, JDRF and the Steve Morgan Foundation. They are investing £50m in cutting edge research to help find new treatments for type 1 diabetes.

Dr. Tim Hayes, Co-Chair of the Novel Insulin Science Advisory Committee for the Grand Challenge for Type 1 Diabetes, said smart insulin could herald a new era in the fight against diabetes. “Even with the modern insulins available today, people with type 1 diabetes must try to manage their diabetes every day to find a good balance between glycemic control appropriate on the one hand and avoid hypoglycemia on the other hand.

“Glucose-responsive – smart – insulins are considered the holy grail of insulin because they can treat almost as much type 1 diabetes as any drug therapy can.”

Almost £3 million has been awarded to six research projects that have developed different types of smart insulin. Among them were teams from Stanford University in the US, Monash University in Australia, and Zhejiang University in China. The goal is to accelerate development and start testing as soon as possible.

Each project aims to fine-tune smart insulin to work faster and more accurately, removing some, or all, of the burden of managing type 2 diabetes. 1 and reduces the risk of long-term complications. Four projects focused specifically on GRI tests.

A fifth has developed a new short-acting ultrarapid insulin. Even with faster insulin availability, there is still a delay between the time the drug is administered and the rate at which the drug begins to act on blood glucose. Blood glucose can rise to unsafe levels before insulin can lower it.

Faster insulin is needed to improve the performance of insulin pumps and closed-loop dual-fuel technology, a system that relies on insulin stores that respond to changes in blood glucose levels in real time.

The sixth plan focuses on proteins that bind insulin to another hormone, glucagon. Unlike insulin, which helps remove glucose from the blood, glucagon stimulates the liver to release more glucose when blood levels are low. By adding these two hormones in the same formula, blood glucose levels can remain stable.

“Six newly funded research projects are addressing major gaps in insulin therapy,” Hayes said. “So, if this research project is successful, it will usher in a new era in insulin therapy.”

Rachel Connor, Director of Research Partnerships at JDRF UK, said: “Insulin has been saving lives for over 100 years, and previous research has led to important change for people with type 1, where not enough still – managing glucose levels is extremely difficult with insulin, and knowledge needs to find a way to remove the burden.

“By imagining a world where insulin responds to changes in glucose levels in real time, we hope that these six projects will help create a new reality where people who ‘ live with these conditions free from the incessant demands that type 1 makes today.

Dr Elizabeth Duncan, director of research at Diabetes UK, said the project has the potential to revolutionize the treatment of type 1 diabetes. changes in blood sugar levels.

“This will significantly reduce the daily challenges of managing type 1 diabetes and improve the physical and mental health of those suffering from this disease. We believe this research will lead to life-changing advances in the treatment of type 1 diabetes.”