Nanosized particles that release glucagon, the hormone responsible for raising blood glucose levels, on-demand could mean that diabetics don’t need to worry about potentially dangerous low blood sugar levels, according to new research. For diabetics, hypoglycemia – low blood glucose – is common, especially for those taking insulin. It’s also life-threatening.
Severe hypoglycemia can cause a person to feel confused, pass out, or have a seizure. Not all diabetics are ‘hypo aware,’ which increases the risk of serious complications. in the pancreas produce the hormones insulin and glucagon; the former decreases blood glucose, and the latter increases it.
A commercialized injectable version of glucagon exists as an emergency treatment for hypoglycemia and is usually used when a diabetic person is unconscious. But what if severe hypoglycemia could be avoided altogether? Researchers from UCLA have developed a nanomedicine that may just achieve that. Normal fasting blood glucose levels are between 70 mg/dL (3.
9 mmol/L) and 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L). Hypoglycemia is defined as a blood glucose below 70 mg/dL.
The pancreas releases glucagon when blood glucose drops, which instructs the liver to release stored glucose to raise blood glucose. While there are several materials that sense and respond to high glucose levels by , systems that deliver glucagon when they detect low glucose levels are less common. In the present study, the researchers used glucagon encapsulated by micel.