After many years, diabetics become acquainted with insulin injections. After all, this is the only way they can get the hormone that is so necessary for health. However, this may be difficult for some people at first. Moreover, those who have needle phobia They may even refuse treatment. For this reason, scientists have long been looking for new ways to use it. Among them is a team of researchers from the University of British Columbia who have just published two studies on the management of insulin drops under the tongue.
This is a very interesting option. First of all, because it’s not true nothing invasivebut also because it means a very fast arrival at blood flow. The reason why insulin injections are used is precisely so that it must enter the bloodstream without intermediaries. On its way to the digestive system, it can be lost or metabolized where it shouldn’t. On the contrary, in an injection solution or under the tongue, the procedure is much faster.
At the moment these drops are not on sale. However, the authors of the study hope that this will be done in the near future. They are already seeking the appropriate permits to begin work. In the meantime, let’s see how their innovative drug works, allowing you to say goodbye to insulin injections.
Why are insulin injections usually the best option?
One way or another, most of the mechanisms for administering this hormone involve insulin injections. For example, there is patches They deliver insulin through the skin. They often also consist of microneedlingso it’s still not a very convenient option.
Therefore, the best option would be oral administration. But there is a problem. Insulin is a very fragile molecule that will not survive its journey into the digestive system or into acids the same thing. You can use capsules that release it at the right time. Capsules with microneedles have even been studied, which are administered orally and, once in the stomach, inject their contents into the gastric mucosa. In these cases the problem will be that the insulin will be metabolized into liver before entering the bloodstream. This is a process during which its structure changes, so it is no longer as effective.
All this leaves insulin injections as the only option. However, the ideal oral solution may be as simple as administering the hormone under the tongue.
Benefits of sublingual administration
Many tablets, like some anxiolytics, can be swallowed when not absolutely necessary, or administered under the tongue if we want them to work as quickly as possible. This is because there is a lot under the tongue capillaries. Therefore, when the tablet dissolves in saliva, it quickly enters the blood through them.
The same can be done with insulin, but there is a big limitation: the size of the molecules. They are so large that they cannot pass through the walls of the capillaries unless they are given a little help. And these scientists were able to provide him with this help.
To do this, they mixed insulin with cell-penetrating peptide. It is a molecule capable of creating temporary pores in cell membranes. Therefore, they do not cause harm since the pores close after performing their function. It is widely used in research and some treatments to introduce nucleic acids, both DNA and RNA, as well as some large proteins. In this case, insulin injected under the tongue was able to penetrate the capillaries and quickly reach the bloodstream.
It is important to note that the experiments were conducted on mice. Without the peptide, insulin would be stuck in the oral mucosa, but with it it would easily reach the blood. Given these good results, the researchers are looking for private partners to help with commercialization. Of course, they will first have to test whether it will be as effective in humans. If confirmed, this could be the perfect way for diabetics to finally say goodbye to diabetes. insulin punctures.
Source: Hiper Textual
