Harvard fish study led to diabetes breakthroughs

According to a recent article, a whole new class of diabetes drugs has been based on experiments by a Harvard Medical School research physician.
The experiments, which were conducted almost 20 years ago, investigated the bodies of anglerfish discarded on the Boston coastline. Joel Habener, who in 1987 worked as a research physician at the Massachusetts General Hospital found a specific form of protein in the pancreas of anglerfish. The protein was found to be critical to humans.
Using Habener’s results, a number of the foremost drugmaking companies in the world (including Merck, Eli Lilly and Novartis) are creating diabetes medicines that could have a major impact on the future of the disease.
The three drugs, Byetta (Lilly), Januvia (Merck) and Galvus (Novartis) are either already being sold throughout America or are seeking to gain US approval from the Food and Drug Administration. The final application, for Galvus, is expected to be successful.