Odd Chemical Could Stall Diabetes Onset
Scientists at Harvard have isolated a chemical in bear bile that may slow the development of type one diabetes; the research represents a major development in the field of diabetes medicine, particularly prevention. Of course, at the moment and with research still ongoing, there is still a need for diabetic accessories purchased from diabetic supply companies, such as diabetes log books, insulin pump supplies, and the variety of proprietary glucose meter test strips—ranging from prodigy test strips to truetest test strips and even aviva test strips. However, the research may make it possible in the future for doctors to treat type one diabetes before it even happens.
The background of the study is the study in Chinese medicine of black bear bile; the liquid drained from the gallbladder of a bear had been used extensively in a number of treatments, and unfortunately led to the illicit harvesting and trafficking of bear gallbladder. However, the Harvard study wanted to examine the effects of certain chemicals in the bile for efficacy in treating diabetes as an early intervention. No bears were harmed in the development of the study, which used livestock animals and synthetic processes to produce the chemicals that were needed for the research. In the study, researchers were able to determine that in animals who were predisposed or developing type one diabetes, treatment with a chemical called TUDCA—found in bile—shielded beta cells from immune system attack. This finding comes hand in hand with the developing ability to identify children who are at risk for developing the chronic disease. If the findings are transferrable to humans, doctors could intervene in patients who are at risk to develop type one diabetes, preventing them from a life of purchasing needed diabetic accessories like diabetes log books, insulin pump supplies, and test strips for daily blood glucose monitoring. According to the study’s lead researcher, in higher concentrations the bile extract may also be able to help people at risk for type two diabetes. This would, of course, mean that the days of purchasing items such as prodigy test strips—or depending on preferences, truetest test strips or aviva test strips, or any other branded type—would come to an eventual end.
The Harvard scientists responsible for this research, in particular Gokhan Hotamisligil, who headed up the project, have set a tight timeline for the development of the potential drug. Since bear bile is already FDA-approved for clinical use, Hotamisligil wants to move to human trials in no more than a year and a half. While the protection offered by the TUDCA treatments may not be of value to those already coping with the disease, it could mean the eventual eradication of at least one type of diabetes on the planet, if successful. It will certainly be interesting to see how the rest of the research goes; for many of those living with diabetes, the prospect of a future wherein no one has to buy diabetic accessories or shop at diabetic supply stores for needed items like diabetes log books, glucose meter test strips, or other supplies for diabetes, seems fantastical—but it may be right around the corner.
- What Diabetes Supplies Should You Purchase? 29.02.2016