Experimental drug halted the progression of type 1 diabetes
Teplizumab delayed type 1 diabetes onset in a high-risk group: 7% versus 44% in the placebo group one year after therapy.
Teplizumab delayed type 1 diabetes onset in a high-risk group: 7% versus 44% in the placebo group one year after therapy.
A two-week course of the experimental drug teplizumab delayed the onset of type 1 diabetes in patients from a high-risk group. The study focused on people whose relatives already have diabetes.
The drug was tested on 76 volunteers aged 8–49 who had been found to carry antibodies associated with diabetes. In the group receiving teplizumab, type 1 diabetes developed a year later than in the placebo group. Only 7% of patients in the main group were diagnosed with diabetes during the first year after completing therapy. For the placebo group, this figure was 44%.
The most common side effects of teplizumab are low lymphocyte counts and fever. The drug is known to reduce the activity of autoreactive CD3+ T cells, sparing the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas from destruction.
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