New treatment for Type 2 diabetes

Scientists from Sydney’s Garvan Institute have demonstrated that the drug candidate Lisofylline may be useful in the treatment of Type 2 diabetes.

Lisofylline is an anti-inflammatory drug currently in clinical trials for other diseases and until now has never been proposed as a treatment for diabetes.

Dr Georgia Frangioudakis and Dr Carsten Schmitz-Peiffer from Sydney’s Garvan Institute of Medical Research tested the drug on mice subjected to high-fat diets noting its effectiveness in preventing the build up of a number of fat metabolites, including Ceramide, which is thought to be the source of its anti-inflamatory properties.

“A lot of studies have shown that a build-up of Ceramide in muscle correlates at least with a build up of insulin resistance,” said Schmitz-Peiffer.

“In the absence of Ceramide, the transmission of signals between molecules inside cells improves, and so does the ability of insulin to be effective.” Insulin facilitates the movement of glucose from the bloodstream into the cells after eating. But this process is compromised in over-weight people who often develop ‘glucose intolerance’ or ‘insulin resistance’.

The researchers tested Lisofylline and another fat metabolism inhibitor under different dietary conditions, and in every case Lisofylline was shown to improve insulin action, indicating its potential for treating obesity-related insulin resistance.

The Garvan Institute has entered into a partnership with US pharmaceutical company DiaKine Therapeutics to advance the research and pursue commercial opportunities.

Lisofylline has already passed Phase 1 clinical trials showing the drug to be safe when used in healthy subjects, and is currently undergoing Phase 2 trials related to other diseases.

The results of the Garvan Institute Study were published this week online in the journal Endocrinology.