Diabetes treatment revolution in 2023: Innovative drug delivery solutions for the future

Diabetes is widely considered one of the top seven leading causes of death globally. The disease's chronic and debilitating nature significantly affects the patient's quality of life. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that over 400 million people worldwide suffer from diabetes, and this number is projected to rise to over 570 million by 2030. Primary treatment options for managing diabetes include insulin injection and non-insulin therapies, and new innovative drugs and therapies are being developed to address this debilitating disease.

Parenteral administration is necessary for the administration of insulin and some diabetes drugs, which raises the risk of dosage errors, microbial contamination, and needlestick injuries. This is a significant concern, given that patients typically self-administer these drugs and often lack the necessary medical training and caution while self-medicating. The risks associated with self-medication lead to a stigma that impacts patient adherence to prescribed drug regimens, ultimately compromising therapeutic efficacy.

Intranasal drug delivery systems, insulin pumps, pen injectors/autoinjectors, jet injectors, and microneedle-based patches have all been developed to solve these problems. These innovative solutions aim to reduce the frequency of administration, eliminate dosing errors, and increase patients' adherence to prescribed regimens. Additionally, stakeholders are actively integrating continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems with insulin pumps, using artificial intelligence algorithms, and incorporating automatic drug reconstitution, visual/audible drug delivery confirmation notifications, and error alerts.

Given the increased efforts toward advanced drug delivery solutions, BioIntel360 believes that the market for diabetes treatments is likely to grow in the coming years.

PureIMS, a pharmaceutical company based in the Netherlands, has received an undisclosed sum of funding to develop an inhalation product and support partnerships.
The Boost-UP Foundation joined current investors CardusoCapital, IMDS Medical Devices, and LinesBridge Pharma Group at the most recent fundraising round. The investment will be used, according to the firm, to launch the lead programme, Levodopa Cyclops, for commercialization in the EEA and the US. Early clinical trials have already shown that this medication works significantly more quickly than other inhalers and non-inhaler alternatives to treat Parkinson's disease's OFF episodes. With its present investments, PureIMS also hopes to persuade pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to take part in preclinical research programmes to create both small and big molecules for local and systemic purposes.
PureIMS CEO Jaap Wieling expressed his satisfaction with the current funding, stating that it would enable the company to take a significant step forward in its development and capitalize on the opportunities presented by Cyclops for a broad range of molecules and indications, including marketed compounds, NCEs, and NBEs.
Using next-generation technology to automatically deliver insulin, a bionic pancreas can maintain normal blood glucose (sugar) levels in people with type 1 diabetes better than standard-of-care therapy, according to a recent multicenter clinical trial. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), a section of the National Institutes of Health, provided the trial's primary funding, according to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine. Automated insulin delivery systems, also known as closed-loop control systems or artificial pancreas, use a continuous glucose monitor to monitor an individual's blood glucose levels and deliver insulin automatically through an insulin pump when necessary. These technologies take the place of manual pumps, continuous glucose monitoring with many daily insulin injections, and fingerstick glucose level testing.
The current continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices are worn on various parts of the body, such as the arm, stomach, buttocks, or legs, and have a lifespan of one to two weeks, depending on the device. Some companies are working on developing needle-free CGM devices that can be worn on the eye or as an ear clip, while others are developing a smartwatch for the same purpose. Although these devices are still in their early stages of development, there is a continuous effort towards developing CGM devices that are more user-friendly and have a longer lifespan in the future.
Efforts have been made by researchers to develop insulin that can be taken orally, but so far, they have been unsuccessful. However, research is still ongoing. OraMed, a company, is presently enlisting patients for a phase 3 clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of their oral insulin product.
At present, the development of smart insulin patches is in its preliminary phase. These skin patches are wearable and intend to provide insulin to the body without causing pain. Some insulin patches are already accessible, but they differ slightly from traditional insulin pump devices. They provide rapid-acting insulin to correct high blood glucose levels and for meals, without requiring any injections. In the future, more insulin patches may be produced that function similarly to nicotine patches and are even simpler to use.