btw, in regards to these alternative insulin delivery systems.
this is one of the areas i have been studying for 10 yrs now - alternative drug delivery systems. i have a friend who teaches in the field of pharmacy in this very topic - delivery systems
oral breakdown of hormones, peptides etc. is a big negative for pharm industry.
about the only oral hormone that is NOT broken down in the oral pathway is estrogen btw (ie birth control pills)
testosterone, insulin, hgh, igf, etc are all a big bust orally. that's why insulin is injected, hgh is injected, igf is injected, test is injected, and the test that is taken orally is usually methylated, which makes it bioavailable (avoids first past liver breakdown), but also makes it hepatatoxic, similar to tylenol and many other oral drugs - read: dangerous to liver. in general, most oral drugs that are 7-methylated are very hepatatoxic.
nasal administration has been at the forefront of technology for some time. it already HAS been done for hormones long before they tried it with insulin -the east german olympic team comes to mind. they were using hydroxypropylbetacyclodextrin compounded hormones iirc for their exceptionally short half-life in the body and instant admin to beat the tests.
ANYWAYS...
buccal, nasal and transdermal are the three ways around first pass liver breakdown (or even breakdown in digestive system prior to liver that is the case with many exceptionally fragile hormones).
transdermal (think nicotine patch) tends to be messy and a pain. and is not precise enough for insulin
buccal has worked (also with hydroxypropyl...), and nasal sprays too
the thing about insulin is that the LD50 is so close to the therapeutic dose, that whatever alternative delivery method turns out to be the VHS (vs. the betamax) of drug deliveries HAS to be not just effective, but EXTREMELY precise. there IS no LD50 for estrogen, test, hgh, igf, etc. iow, if the dosing is off you won't die. in the case of insulin, you will definitely die.
that's the kicker.
transdermals are too imprecise imo.
the buccals and especially the nasals offer better potential.
anyways, taht's my .02
btw, most people don't realize that injectable insulin, which is one of the most powerful and dangerous drugs on the planet, if misdosed is an OVER THE COUNTER drug, at least in some formulations e.g. humulin-r
that's simply astounding, and a nod to the power inherent in the pharma industry and that AARP to circumvent normal FDA cautionary procedures.
this is one of the areas i have been studying for 10 yrs now - alternative drug delivery systems. i have a friend who teaches in the field of pharmacy in this very topic - delivery systems
oral breakdown of hormones, peptides etc. is a big negative for pharm industry.
about the only oral hormone that is NOT broken down in the oral pathway is estrogen btw (ie birth control pills)
testosterone, insulin, hgh, igf, etc are all a big bust orally. that's why insulin is injected, hgh is injected, igf is injected, test is injected, and the test that is taken orally is usually methylated, which makes it bioavailable (avoids first past liver breakdown), but also makes it hepatatoxic, similar to tylenol and many other oral drugs - read: dangerous to liver. in general, most oral drugs that are 7-methylated are very hepatatoxic.
nasal administration has been at the forefront of technology for some time. it already HAS been done for hormones long before they tried it with insulin -the east german olympic team comes to mind. they were using hydroxypropylbetacyclodextrin compounded hormones iirc for their exceptionally short half-life in the body and instant admin to beat the tests.
ANYWAYS...
buccal, nasal and transdermal are the three ways around first pass liver breakdown (or even breakdown in digestive system prior to liver that is the case with many exceptionally fragile hormones).
transdermal (think nicotine patch) tends to be messy and a pain. and is not precise enough for insulin
buccal has worked (also with hydroxypropyl...), and nasal sprays too
the thing about insulin is that the LD50 is so close to the therapeutic dose, that whatever alternative delivery method turns out to be the VHS (vs. the betamax) of drug deliveries HAS to be not just effective, but EXTREMELY precise. there IS no LD50 for estrogen, test, hgh, igf, etc. iow, if the dosing is off you won't die. in the case of insulin, you will definitely die.
that's the kicker.
transdermals are too imprecise imo.
the buccals and especially the nasals offer better potential.
anyways, taht's my .02
btw, most people don't realize that injectable insulin, which is one of the most powerful and dangerous drugs on the planet, if misdosed is an OVER THE COUNTER drug, at least in some formulations e.g. humulin-r
that's simply astounding, and a nod to the power inherent in the pharma industry and that AARP to circumvent normal FDA cautionary procedures.