The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) and Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. have agreed to to provide financial support for a clinical proof-of-concept study to investigate the effects of metreleptin, an analog of the human hormone leptin, in patients with type 1 diabetes which will be conducted at The University of Texas (UT) Southwestern Medical Center. UT Southwestern has already conducted studies in animal models with type 1 diabetes that showed an improvement in blood glucose, blood fats, and cholesterol following administration of the hormone.
The clinical study will help to determine if similar improvements in glucose, and reduction of the amount of insulin required, can be achieved in people with type 1 diabetes. Leptin is a hormone secreted by fat cells that plays a fundamental role in the regulation of glucose metabolism.
“If effective in humans, metreleptin, when used with insulin, could change the way people manage their disease.” said Aaron Kowalski, Ph.D., Assistant Vice President of Treatment Therapies at JDRF, “Less insulin usage and fewer low blood sugar episodes would represent a significant improvement in quality of life for certain people living with type 1 diabetes today.”
The research collaboration agreement between JDRF and Amylin is part of JDRF’s Industry Discovery and Development Partnership (IDDP) program through which JDRF partners with pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device companies focused on the discovery, development, and delivery of therapeutics and devices for type 1 diabetes and its complications.
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