Insulin News and Research

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Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert glucose, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. Insulin allows cells to use glucose for fuel and is secreted by beta cells in the islets of Langerhans. The release of insulin from the pancreas is stimulated by increased blood glucose, vagal nerve stimulation, and other factors. Insulin is obtained from various animals and available in a variety of preparations. Commercial insulin preparations differ in a number of ways, including differences in the animal species from which they are obtained; their purity, concentration, and solubility; and the time of onset and duration of their biologic action. An oral hypoglycemic agent is not a form of insulin therapy.

Brain plays a key role in regulating glucose metabolism in humans

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have demonstrated for the first time that the brain is a key player in regulating glucose (sugar) metabolism in humans.

7 Nov 2011

Mediterranean Diet beneficial even without weight loss

The benefits of the Mediterranean Diet go beyond weight loss, even when weight loss isn't achieved. Researchers from St. Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, studied 12 patients without diabetes who had nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and the results of their study demonstrated that liver health was improved even without weight loss.

7 Nov 2011

Rheumavax safe and feasible in treating RA

A vaccine designed to re-educate the immune system has been shown to be safe and feasible in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, according to research presented this week at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Scientific Meeting in Chicago.

7 Nov 2011

Sitting around could be waiting for cancer to strike say researchers

A new analysis reveals that more than 90,000 new cancer cases a year in the United States may be due to physical inactivity and prolonged periods of sitting. The researchers presented their findings at the annual conference of the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) in Washington, D.C., citing about 49,000 cases of breast cancer and 43,000 of colon cancer from over 200 studies worldwide.

6 Nov 2011

New way to screen hirsutism among women

Examining the chin and upper and lower abdomen is a reliable, minimally invasive way to screen for excessive hair growth in women, a key indicator of too much male hormone, researchers report.

4 Nov 2011

NEJM publishes 'The 2010 Dietary Guidelines -- The Best Recipe for Health?'

USDA's interest protects that of Industry -- not the American public, conclude leading researchers Water C. Willett, MD, PhD, and David S. Ludwig, MD, PhD in their article, "The 2010 Dietary Guidelines -- The Best Recipe for Health?" published in the prestigious peer-reviewed The New England Journal of Medicine.

4 Nov 2011

JDC receives NIDDK grant for research into diabetic retinopathy, kidney disease

Joslin Diabetes Center has received a $3.9 million DP3 grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, to identify protective factors that enable many Joslin 50-Year Medalists to remain free of commonly occurring diabetes complications.

3 Nov 2011

Exendin-4 drug could prevent later development of diabetes in children

Pediatric researchers who tested newborn animals with an existing human drug used in adults with diabetes report that this drug, when given very early in life, prevents diabetes from developing in adult animals. If this finding can be repeated in humans, it may become a way to prevent at-risk infants from developing type 2 diabetes.

3 Nov 2011

Exenatide's rapid anti-inflammatory effect may inhibit atherosclerosis

Exenatide, a drug commonly prescribed to help patients with type 2 diabetes improve blood sugar control, also has a powerful and rapid anti-inflammatory effect, a University at Buffalo study has shown.

3 Nov 2011

Researchers use diabetes drug to permanently reprogram insulin-producing cells

3 Nov 2011

New laser technique could create tissue scaffolds, microneedles

In the emerging field of tissue engineering, scientists encourage cells to grow on carefully designed support scaffolds. The ultimate goal is to create living structures that might one day be used to replace lost or damaged tissue, but the manufacture of appropriately detailed scaffolds presents a significant challenge that has kept most tissue engineering applications confined to the research lab.

3 Nov 2011

DexCom signs research and development agreement with Roche

Roche Diagnostics U.S., with its business unit Roche Diabetes Care, a leader in blood glucose monitoring and insulin delivery systems, and DexCom, Inc., a leader in continuous glucose monitoring systems, announced today that they have signed a research and development agreement.

From Roche Sequencing and Life Science 3 Nov 2011

Resveratrol holds key to reducing obesity and associated risks: Study

A new study shows that when taken regularly a natural compound known as resveratrol, found in red wine and grapes, mulberries and peanuts, can offer similar benefits to low-calorie diets and endurance training.

2 Nov 2011

Isis commences ISIS-GCGRRx and ISIS-GCCRRx Phase 1 studies for type 2 diabetes

Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that it has initiated Phase 1 clinical studies for ISIS-GCGRRx and ISIS-GCCRRx, antisense drugs Isis is developing for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

2 Nov 2011

Glyphosine can prevent development of type 1 diabetes

Researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine have found a specific molecule that can prevent the development of type 1 diabetes in mice and has a similar effect on human cells from diabetic patients.

2 Nov 2011

Positive results from DARA's DB959 Phase 1b study on type 2 diabetes

DARA BioSciences, Inc., announces the positive results from a successfully completed Phase 1b clinical study for DB959, its peroxisome proliferator activated receptor (PPAR)-delta/gamma agonist, a non-TZD oral drug in development for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

2 Nov 2011

Renowned obstetrician receives March of Dimes 2011 Agnes Higgins award

A highly renowned obstetrician, professor and researcher who showed that babies born to obese and diabetic women have a higher risk of becoming overweight and developing diabetes or other metabolic health problems later in life, received the March of Dimes 2011 Agnes Higgins award for outstanding achievement in the field of maternal-fetal nutrition.

31 Oct 2011

FDA approves Medtronic's LGS IDE for clinical trial to treat Type 1 diabetes

In our continued commitment to develop an artificial pancreas, Medtronic, Inc. today announced U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of its Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) to conduct a pivotal in-home clinical trial protocol for the ASPIRE study of the MiniMed Paradigm System featuring Low Glucose Suspend (LGS) automation.

From Medtronic 29 Oct 2011

Specific metabolic disturbances precede children's progression to Type 1 diabetes

New potential avenues for early disease detection and prevention: A study led by Matej Orešič from VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland suggests that autoimmune diabetes is preceded by diminished gut microbial diversity of the Clostridium leptum subgroup, elevated plasma leptin and enhanced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion.

29 Oct 2011

Scientists describe how protein acts as courier in cell signaling pathways

Normal development, from fertilized egg to adult organism, depends on each cell receiving proper instructions from its environment. In response to such incoming information, receptors on a cell's surface send signals to the nucleus that tweak gene expression and control cellular function.

28 Oct 2011