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A groundbreaking injection has been hailed ‘a potential cure’ for deadly type 1 diabetes, with hopes it could remove the need for daily insulin jabs.
In a first-of-its-kind trial, patients will receive a one-off gene therapy jab designed to help the body control blood sugar levels on its own.
Around 460,000 people in Britain live with type 1 diabetes and must take insulin every day because their bodies cannot produce insulin – the hormone needed to convert sugar into energy and keep the body functioning properly.
Now the new treatment, which will deliver insulin-related genes into thigh muscles so they can continue to produce proteins and regulate blood sugar, could potentially last a lifetime after just one dose.
Early animal studies showed the injection – called KRIYA-839 – was able to stabilise blood sugar levels for up to four years without suppressing the immune system – something which has been seen as a major risk in current diabetes therapies.
Unveiled at this year’s International Conference on Advanced Technologies and Treatments for Diabetes, the jab will now be tested in humans for the first time.
‘In the type 1 community, we’re used to (hearing) this will happen in 10 to 15 years and maybe will come one day,’ announced Jeremy Pettus, an endocrinologist and associate professor of medicine at the University of California, as first reported by Medscape.
‘It’s very exciting to stand here and say that this is actually something that’s in the works and happening now.’
A groundbreaking injection is set to be trialled for people with type 1 diabetes, with hopes it could remove the need for daily insulin
Dr Partha Kar, NHS England’s national speciality adviser for diabetes told the Daily Mail that the development is ‘really exciting’ and has the potential to be a ‘functional cure’ for type 1 diabetes.
He said: ‘(I see it as really exciting). We’re talking about a lifetime of coming off high doses of insulin.’
Dr Kar believes the two ‘big unknowns’ going into the trials are how much insulin the injection will produce, and how long the effects will last.
But, he said: ‘I see it as positive. I think I’d be excited if me or if my children had type 1 diabetes. I certainly would be keeping a very close eye on this.’
If successful, the jab may help type 1 diabetics across the world, with Prof Pettus saying it could ‘potentially be for the masses.’
He added: ‘This is a proven technology. Now the manufacturing has improved such that we can move away from the (rare) cases to more common diseases like diabetes.’
Dr Kar said the injection has the potential to ‘help a lot of people if it works’ and that ‘it’s got a potential for being a functional cure’ – even if ‘it’s not a complete one’.
The treatment will involve a short period of ‘immune modulation,’ meaning the immune system is temporarily dampened to help the therapy enter cells effectively.
The injection may be given in both legs during a single outpatient visit lasting up to an hour and could take two to three months to reach full effect.
‘And then, if all goes well, this could last for the entire life of the patient,’ Prof Pettus added.
The initial trial will run for one year and enrol adults with higher blood sugar levels who already use automated insulin delivery systems – such as wearable glucose pumps.
If successful, future trials could include those who use daily injections.
Tadej Battelino, head of endocrinology at UCH-UMC Ljubljana, told Medscape that he wouldn’t use the word ‘cure’ just yet, adding: ‘I tend to be cautious, so I really can’t give promises. Does this have a potential? Very much so.’
Battelino added that if it can keep blood sugar in a healthy range most of the time, perhaps in combination with technology, then ‘I’m not saying it’s a cure, but a functional cure, for sure.’
