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Scientists in California have developed
a way to modify insulin that may allow diabetics to store
the sugar-processing hormone in their bodies until it is needed.
People with type 1, or insulin-dependent,
diabetes produce little or no insulin, a hormone that regulates
the amount of sugar in the blood. To maintain healthy levels
of blood sugar, they must
take insulin, often by injection. Another option
is to use an insulin pump, a device implanted in the body
that provides a continuous supply of the hormone.
Researchers are working on an insulin
delivery technique that could one day provide a more convenient
way for people with diabetes to maintain their blood sugar
levels.
The researchers modified insulin so that
it is dormant until activated by 38C2, a type of protein called
a catalytic aldolase antibody. The idea is that a diabetic
person could take insulin, which would then be stored
in the body until a drug containing the antibody
activated the hormone.
In laboratory tests, the altered form
of insulin was much less effective at processing sugar. The
modified insulin was 90% less likely to bind to insulin receptors.
And its ability to process sugar was reduced by 96%.
But when the researchers added the antibody,
the properties of the modified insulin were restored to normal.
When the researchers tested the system in rats, they achieved
similar results.
Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences November 20, 2001;98:13514-13518
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