A variety of new treatment options are under development for the treatment of type 1 or type 2 diabetes.
The number of agents used to enhance glycemic control in patients with diabetes has increased significantly in recent years. About 15 years ago, only sulfonylureas and insulin were available. Nowadays, products from several additional classes, providing multiple new pathways and expanded possibilities for combination therapy. The ability to individually customize therapy for each particular patient has significantly increased. The development of new treatment options for diabetes mellitus continues.
Many new medicines are now under formulation with new treatment options for diabetes mellitus and more medications with new mechanisms. This article would provide a short description of some of these new treatment options for diabetes mellitus.
What’s Diabetes Mellitus?
Diabetes mellitus (sometimes referred to as “sugar diabetes”) is a condition that happens when the body cannot naturally use glucose (a form of sugar). Glucose is the main energy supply for the body’s cells. a hormone, insulin that the pancreas releases does the blood glucose regulation. Insulin helps the glucose to reach the cells.
In diabetes, the pancreas doesn’t always make enough insulin (type 1 diabetes), or the body cannot naturally respond to the insulin that is released (type 2 diabetes). This causes blood glucose levels to rise, leading to symptoms such as excessive urination, extreme thirst, and unexplained weight loss.
New treatment options for diabetes mellitus
This article offers a short description of each of these medications. Drugs used in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and drugs in phase 3 clinical trials discussion is below, so have a read.
New oral drugs
With the exception of Steglatro, which includes only one drug, all combination medications are new oral drugs to treat type 2 diabetes. They combine two medications used on their own to treat type 2 diabetes.
These drugs are all brand-name drugs that don’t have generic versions.
1. Xigduo XR XR
It is a 24-hour oral long-acting tablet. It comes under approved drug list since 2014. Xigduo XR combines metformin and dapagliflozin. Metformin helps make body tissues more insulin-sensitive. Dapagliflozin blocks certain glucose from entering your blood through your kidneys in your system. Furthermore, also helps the body to get rid of the glucose in your urine.
2. Synjardy’s
Synjardy, which comes as an oral tablet, has been approved for use in 2015. It blends metformin and empagliflozin. Nevertheless, Empagliflozin functions in the same way as dapagliflozin.
3. Glyxambi
Glyxambi, which also comes as an oral tablet, has been approved for use in 2015. Because it combines linagliptin and empagliflozin. Firstly, Linagliptin prevents the breakdown of those hormones in your body that instruct the pancreas to make and release insulin. Secondly, it even slows down your metabolism, which slows down the release of glucose into your blood.
4. Steglujan’s
Steglujan, which comes as an oral tablet, combines ertugliflozin with sitagliptin. Ertugliflozin works by the same mechanism as empagliflozin. Sitagliptin prevents the degradation of certain hormones in your body that instruct the pancreas to make and release insulin. It even slows down your metabolism, which slows down the absorption of glucose in your blood.
5. Segluromet
Segluromet is an oral tablet. It combines ertugliflozin with metformin.
6. Steglatro
Steglatro, approved in 2017, comes as an oral tablet. It’s the brand name of medication ertugliflozin. It works with the same principle as empagliflozin. As the combination of medications on this list, Steglatro can effectively manage and work as a new treatment option for type 2 diabetes.
New injectables
These new brand name injectables are not generic drugs as per their license. They help with either type 2 diabetes or both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
They contain a type of insulin, a GLP-1 agonist, or both. The various insulin injected types serve as a replacement for insulin that your body can not produce or cannot use properly. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists help the pancreas produce more insulin when the glucose levels are high. They also slow down the absorption of glucose during digestion.
1. Tresiba
Tresiba, approved in 2015, is a brand-name variant of the insulin degludec drug. It can help in the management of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
Tresiba is a long-acting insulin that lasts for up to 42 hours. This is longer than insulin usual insulins. It’s taken once a day.
2. Toujeo and Basaglar
Basaglar and Toujeo are two new varieties of insulin glargine. They can manage both type 1 and type 2 diabetes by injecting once daily.
Basaglar is a long-acting insulin drug approved for use in 2015. It is identical to another insulin glargine drug, Lantus. Toujeo, a most concentrated type of insulin glargine, and approved in 2015.
3. Xultophy
Approved in 2016, can only manage the patients with type 2 diabetes. Xultophy is injected once a day.
It combines insulin degludec, long-acting insulin, and liraglutide, a GLP-1 agonist.
4. Soliqua
It was approved in 2016 and can manage type 2 diabetes effectively by dosing once a day as an injection.
It combines insulin glargine with lixisenatide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist.
5. Özempic
Approved at the end of 2017. It can effectively manage type 2 diabetes. Ozempic is a GLP-1 agonist brand name version: semaglutide. It is given once a week.
6. Adlyxin’s
Adlyxin was approved for use in 2016. It is only used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Adlyxin is a GLP-1 agonist brand name version called lixisenatide. It is injected once a day.
7. Ryzodeg
Ryzodeg was approved in 2016, but it is not yet available. It is designed to be used to treat both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Ryzodeg combines insulin degludec and insulin aspart. It’s meant to be injected once or twice a day.
Diabetes medications in development
In addition to these new drugs, several diabetes drugs are currently developing new treatment options for diabetes mellitus. These drugs shall include:
- Oral-Lyn. This brand name medication comes as a fast-acting oral insulin spray. It treats both type 1 and types 2 diabetes.
- The 501 dance. This aerosol sensor includes liquid insulin, which is designed to be inhaled at mealtime. It is designed to treat both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
The bottom line
A wide range of agents is being developed for use in new treatment options for diabetes mellitus. All these agents tend to be effective in improving glycemic regulation. Still, it is not clear if they would affect the disease’s course or change the micro-and macro-vascular effects of uncontrolled diabetes. One of the DPP-4 inhibitors is most likely to enter the next market, likely liraglutide or mitiglinide. PPAR-Δ agonists and SGLT2 inhibitors are also at an early stage of phase 3 development.
