Could engineered probiotics eventually treat diabetes?

According to some new research out of Cornell University, probiotic pills could potentially be an answer to diabetes treatment.

A study published Jan. 27 in the journal Diabetes delved into how a common probiotic in the gut (lactobacillus) could be engineered to secrete Glucagen-like peptide (GPL-1).

Diabetic rats were given the engineered probiotic for 90 days and actually showed up to a 30 percent decrease in high blood glucose levels.

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The study was a proof of principle, and future work will test higher doses to see if a complete treatment can be achieved, said John March, professor of biological and environmental engineering at Cornell University and the paper’s senior author, according to Science Daily.

“The amount of time to reduce glucose levels following a meal is the same as in a normal rat, … and it is matched to the amount of glucose in the blood,” just as it would be with a normal-functioning pancreas, March said. “It’s moving the center of glucose control from the pancreas to the upper intestine.”

Researchers found no changes in the rats that did not have diabetes. “If the rat is managing its glucose, it doesn’t need more insulin,” March said.

BioPancreate, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cortendo AB, a biopharmaceutical company incorporated in Sweden and based in Radnor, Penn., licensed this new technology. The company is currently working to get the engineered probiotic available for human use.