A team of Canadian researchers is developing an oral treatment for diabetes where the absorption of insulin is analogous to that of injected doses.
The development was announced in a statement released by the University of British Columbia (UBC), which revealed that “researchers have found that insulin from the latest version of their oral tablets is taken up by rats in the same way as injected insulin”.
The research team is led by Principal Investigator Dr Anubhav Pratap-Singh of UBC’s Faculty of Earth and Food Systems.
Also, the first part of the study was published in the journal Scientific Reports.
Dr Pratap-Singh said: “These exciting results show that we are well on our way to developing an insulin formulation that will no longer need to be injected before each meal, thus improving the quality of life. , as well as the mental health, of more than nine million type 1 diabetics worldwide.
“The inspiration for the research, he said, came from his father, a diabetic who has needed three or four insulin injections a day for the past 15 years.
“Development work on the pill has not yet been completed in human trials, so a timeline for the final product has not yet been specified. However, Dr Pratap-Singh said if successfully delivered, the oral tablet would be “more durable, cost-effective and accessible”.
As oral insulin alternatives are tested around the world, the UBC team concentrated on “how to facilitate a higher rate of absorption”.
The developed tablet will not be swallowed but will be placed between the gum line and the cheek to allow it to dissolve. The UBC statement read: “This method uses the thin membrane found in the lining of the inner cheek and behind the lips (also known as the oral mucosa). It delivered all the insulin to the liver without wasting or breaking down insulin. insulin along the way.”
Dr Alberto Baldelli, a principal investigator in Dr Pratap-Singh’s lab, revealed they were now seeing around 100% of the insulin in their tablets moving directly to the liver, but in previous attempts to develop drinkable insulin, most of it stayed in the stomach. He said: “Similar to rapid-acting insulin injection, our oral tablet absorbs after half an hour and can last for around two to four hours.”
Dr Pratap-Singh hoped that their process would “reduce the cost of insulin per dose” as their “oral alternative could be cheaper and easier to manufacture.”
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