The future of type 1 diabetes therapy

The treatment of type 1 diabetes is evolving. Scientists from the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) and Helmholtz Munich provide an overview of groundbreaking developments that will change the course of therapy.

In a recent review article in the journal The Lancet Prof. Anette-Gabriele Ziegler (Helmholtz Munich and DZD) and her colleagues Prof. Eda Cengiz and Prof. Thomas W. H. Kay assess the current state of research:

Thanks to modern tests – known as autoantibody screenings – physicians can detect the disease before the first symptoms appear. This reduces the risk of serious complications such as ketoacidosis – a dangerous metabolic disorder involving a sharp rise in blood sugar levels and an increase in the acidity of the body.

An important advance is immunotherapy with the drug Teplizumab, which can delay the onset of the disease. In type 1 diabetes, the body's own immune system attacks the beta cells in the pancreas—the cells that produce insulin. Teplizumab “calms” the immune system and protects the beta cells. The US Food and Drug Administration has already approved the drug Teplizumab.

Further research aims to preserve or replace beta cells in the long term. Stem cell therapies grow new beta cells and protect them in special capsules or through targeted genetic modification of these cells so that the immune system attacks them less. Initial studies show that this could increase insulin production and reduce insulin requirements.

Daily treatment is also becoming easier. New insulins work faster, longer, or automatically adjust to blood sugar levels. In combination with automated insulin delivery (AID), levels remain more stable and patients have to worry less about their therapy.

These advances enable earlier diagnosis, slow the progression of the disease, and improve quality of life. Immune and stem cell therapies open up prospects that could reduce insulin dependence in the long term. Research shows that the future of treatment is focused not only on blood sugar control, but also on prevention and possibly a cure.

Source: DZD