Drug Used to Treat Skin Disorder May Also Cure Type 1 Diabetes

A drug used to treat a skin disorder may also be effective in treating type 1 diabetes, according to BBC.

A small trial on US patients suggests that Alefacept (sold as Amevive) helps the body produce its own insulin, which is key for people with type 1 diabetes. The study published in the Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology claimed that type 1 diabetes affects around 400,000 people in the UK. Researchers said the drug could be better than other treatments because it protects the immune system - but more research was needed.

Alefacept was used to treat the skin disorder psoriasis in the US before it was withdrawn by its manufacturer in 2011. The drug was never approved for the European drug market. Psoriasis, like type 1 diabetes, is an autoimmune disorder that occurs when the immune system attacks healthy skin cells.

In clinical trials of the drug on psoriasis, the drug was found to attack specific types of T-cells that were also involved in attacking insulin-producing cells in type 1 diabetes. So researchers, led by a team at Indiana University, Indianapolis, decided to investigate if it could have any effect on newly diagnosed type 1 patients.

In the trial, which is continuing, 33 patients received weekly injections of alefacept for 12 weeks, followed by a break of 12 weeks, and then another 12 weekly doses. Another 16 participants were given placebo injections following the same schedule.

The researchers found no difference in how well the pancreas produced insulin two hours after eating food, but they did find "significant differences" between the two groups four hours after eating. At this point, the group who received the drug showed they were able to preserve insulin while the placebo group's insulin levels decreased.