Promising Target for Diabetes Treatment Discovered by Scientists
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Researchers have discovered a novel and druggable insulin inhibitory receptor, named inceptor. The latest study from Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen, the Technical University of Munich, and the German Center for Diabetes Research is a significant milestone for diabetes research as the scientific community celebrates 100 years of insulin and 50 years of insulin receptor discovery. The blocking of inceptor function leads to an increased sensitization of the insulin signaling pathway in pancreatic beta cells. This might allow protection and regeneration of beta cells for diabetes remission.
Diabetes mellitus is a complex disease characterized by the loss or dysfunction of insulin-producing beta cells in the islets of Langerhans, a specialist “micro-organ” in the pancreas that controls systemic blood sugar levels. Diabetes complications, such as chronic high blood sugar, systemic metabolic failure and, in the long-term, multi-organ damage, create enormous medical and social burdens and leads to premature death. Currently no pharmacological treatment can stop or reverse disease progression. Previous studies have demonstrated that intensive insulin therapy has the potential for improved blood sugar control and diabetes remission but also leads to unintended weight gain and even more severe side effects, such as an increased risk of deep drop in blood sugar causing unawareness.