EDMONTON — Researchers have found that a class of older antipsychotic drugs could be a promising new therapeutic option for people with Type 2 diabetes, helping fill a need among patients who aren’t able to take other currently available treatments.
“There is a growing need to find new therapies for Type 2 diabetes,” says John Ussher, professor in the Faculty of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences and lead author of the recent study published in the journal Diabetes.
As Ussher explains, this need stems from the fact that 15 per cent of patients aren’t able to take metformin, one of the most common therapeutics to lower blood sugar for Type 2 diabetics. As well, another type of drug class commonly used to treat diabetes — insulin secretagogues — isn’t as effective for later-stage patients who also need a different option.
Using computer modeling, Ussher and his team landed on an older generation of antipsychotic drugs, a drug class called diphenylbutylpiperidines, commonly known as DPBP.
While Ussher’s lab previously found that a drug within this class, called pimozide, could be repurposed to help treat diabetes, they’ve since expanded their focus and tested three drugs that all improve blood sugar control by preventing the muscle from burning ketones as a fuel source.
Developing a drug is a complicated, time-consuming and expensive process, but repurposing an existing drug may help fast-track the process, Ussher notes.
“With something that’s an older drug, which we used historically in humans that we no longer use, we know what the adverse effects are, we know in general that it’s safe,” he says.
Though clinical trials are still needed, repurposing a drug allows researchers to focus specifically on the efficacy and safety of the new intended use — offering the potential to provide a new therapeutic more quickly and cost-effectively.
Since DPBP drugs were originally antipsychotics, many of their potential side-effects such as drowsiness, dizziness or fatigue arise from their effects on their original target: the dopamine receptors in the brain. Ussher’s lab is hoping to create a modified version of the drug class that doesn’t reach the brain and has fewer potential adverse effects.
The full story can be seen here. To speak with John Ussher, please contact:
Debra Clark
U of A communications associate
debra.clark@ualberta.ca