Daiichi Sankyo reports bile discovery in diabetes patients

Daiichi Sankyo and kineMed have announced the discovery of a key difference in bile acid metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes that could suggest the existence of a newly-identified underlying disorder.

The firms report data showing “crucial” alterations in this population, which researchers hope will result in a better understanding on how bile acid metabolism is affected in these patients.

Cholic acid had a higher synthesis rate in type 2 diabetes patients than in those with normal glucose levels, while deoxycholic acid was recycling back into the live at twice the rate in these individuals.

Furthermore, the total amount of bile acid synthesised by the liver was higher in type 2 diabetes patients, though this measure was not statistically significant.

Sukumar Nagendran, senior director of diabetes and metabolism at Daiichi Sankyo, said: “Daiichi Sankyo is very excited about these findings and what they might mean for diabetes research and therapy going into the future.”

Elizabeth Murphy, chief of endocrinology and metabolism at San Francisco General Hospital, said that they expect other scientists and doctors to watch this research as it evolves.

Last month, Daiichi Sankyo announced the publicaiton of data form two pooled analyses showing that Welchol (colesevelam HCL) used in combination with metformin or sulfonylurea-based therapy significantly lowers blood glucose in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients who had not previously achieved glycemic control.