Better type 1 diabetes treatment on the horizon

A recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences could indicate better type 1 diabetes treatments in the future. Currently, people with type 1 diabetes have to inject insulin regularly to keep blood glucose levels stable. The study looked at the ways insulin binds to the insulin receptors in cells.
A research team based at the York Structural Biology Laboratory (University of York) identified common features that indicate the molecular structure of insulin within the body. Together with a team from the Czech Republic, the researchers made some important type 1 diabetes discoveries.
Dr. Marek Brzozowski confirmed the findings by commenting: “The structures of inactive forms of insulin and the insulin receptor are reasonably well know, but documenting how they interact has proven to be a considerable scientific challenge. Improving our understanding of this interaction holds the key to developing far more sophisticated treatments for Type 1 diabetes and this research represents an important step forward.”