Drugs used in diabetes treat diabetes mellitus by decreasing glucose levels in the blood. With the exception of insulin, most GLP-1 receptor agonists, and pramlintide, all diabetes medications are administered orally and are thus called oral hypoglycemic agents or oral antihyperglycemic agents. There are different classes of hypoglycemic drugs, and selection of the appropriate agent depends on the nature of diabetes, age, and situation of the person, as well as other patient factors.
Anti-obesity medication or weight loss medications are pharmacological agents that reduce or control excess body fat. These medications alter one of the fundamental processes of the human body, weight regulation, by: reducing appetite and consequently energy intake, increasing energy expenditure, redirecting nutrients from adipose to lean tissue, or interfering with the absorption of calories.
Amylin, or islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP), is a 37-residue peptide hormone. It is co-secreted with insulin from the pancreatic β-cells in the ratio of approximately 100:1 (insulin:amylin). Amylin plays a role in glycemic regulation by slowing gastric emptying and promoting satiety, thereby preventing post-prandial spikes in blood glucose levels.
Pramlintide is an injectable amylin analogue drug for diabetes, developed by Amylin Pharmaceuticals. Pramlintide is sold as an acetate salt.
An insulin analog is any of several types of medical insulin that are altered forms of the hormone insulin, different from any occurring in nature, but still available to the human body for performing the same action as human insulin in terms of controlling blood glucose levels in diabetes. Through genetic engineering of the underlying DNA, the amino acid sequence of insulin can be changed to alter its ADME characteristics. Officially, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) refers to these agents as insulin receptor ligands, although they are usually just referred to as insulin analogs or even just insulin.
Exenatide, sold under the brand name Byetta among others, is a medication used to treat type 2 diabetes. It is used together with diet, exercise, and potentially other antidiabetic medication. It is a treatment option after metformin and sulfonylureas. It is given by injection under the skin.
Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical founded in 1987 that was based in San Diego, California. The company was engaged in the discovery, development, and commercialization of drug candidates for the treatment of diabetes, obesity, and other diseases. Amylin produced three drugs: Symlin, Byetta (exenatide) and Bydureon.
Teplizumab, sold under the brand name Tzield, is a humanized anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody that is the first approved treatment indicated to delay the onset of stage 3 type 1 diabetes (T1D) in people with stage 2 T1D.
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, also known as GLP-1 analogs, GLP-1DAs or incretin mimetics, are a class of anorectic drugs that reduce blood sugar and energy intake by activating the GLP-1 receptor. They mimic the actions of the endogenous incretin hormone GLP-1 that is released by the gut after eating.
Lente insulin was an intermediate duration insulin that is no longer used in humans. The onset of lente insulin is one to two hours after the dose is administered, and the peak effect is approximately 8 to 12 hours after administration, with some effects lasting over 24 hours.
Abaloparatide, sold under the brand name Tymlos among others, is a parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP) analog medication used to treat osteoporosis. It is an anabolic agent.
Vosilasarm, also known by the development codes RAD140 and EP0062 and by the black-market name Testolone or Testalone, is a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) which is under development for the treatment of hormone-sensitive breast cancer. It is specifically under development for the treatment of androgen receptor-positive, estrogen receptor-negative, HER2-negative advanced breast cancer. Vosilasarm was also previously under development for the treatment of sarcopenia, osteoporosis, and weight loss due to cancer cachexia, but development for these indications was discontinued. The drug is taken by mouth.
Dasiglucagon, sold under the brand name Zegalogue, is a medication used to treat severe hypoglycemia in people with diabetes.
Tirzepatide is an antidiabetic medication used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and for weight loss. Tirzepatide is administered via subcutaneous injections. It is sold under the brand names Mounjaro for diabetes treatment, and Zepbound for weight loss.
Cagrilintide is a long-acting analogue of amylin. It is being tested to treat obesity and type 2 diabetes by itself and in combination with semaglutide as cagrilintide/semaglutide.
Cagrilintide/semaglutide, marketed as CagriSema, is a combination of cagrilintide, a dual amylin and calcitonin receptor agonist, and semaglutide, a GLP-1 agonist. It is injected once weekly and is being tested in type 2 diabetes and obesity. Preliminary trial results found a greater weight loss compared to either medication alone. HbA1c was significantly improved compared to cagrilintide alone and non-significantly better than semaglutide alone. In a Phase II trial, weight loss averaged -15.6 percent after 32 weeks, making CagriSema comparable in efficacy to tirzepatide. A future trial sponsored by Novo Nordisk is comparing tirzepatide and CagriSema head-to-head. As of 2023, CagriSema is in a Phase III trial.
Dual amylin and calcitonin receptor agonists (DACRAs) are a class of drugs that act as agonists at the amylin receptor and calcitonin receptor that are under development as therapies for obesity and type 2 diabetes. Examples are cagrilintide and the KBP family derived from salmon calcitonin, including KBP‐042, KBP-066A, KBP-089, and KBP-336.
Mazdutide is a dual agonist of the GLP-1 receptor and glucagon receptor. It is an analog of oxyntomodulin (OXM). The drug is developed by Eli Lilly and is currently in a Phase II study.
Pramlintide/insulin A21G is a combination of the amylin analogue pramlintide and an insulin analog. It is being developed by Adocia for diabetes.
Insulin tregopil is a fast-acting insulin analog, unlike other forms of insulin it is delivered by mouth. It is developed by Biocon for diabetes.
