The human amylin analog, pramlintide, corrects postprandial hyperglucagonemia in patients with type 1 diabetes

What Was Tested

This randomized controlled trial paper looks at Amylin (Islet Amyloid Polypeptide).

Preclinical animal studies indicate that these complementary effects may result from at least 2 independent mechanisms: a slowing of nutrient delivery to the small intestine and a suppression of nutrient-stimulated glucagon secretion.

The present studies characterize the effect of pramlintide on postprandial glucagon secretion in this patient population.

Who Took Part

The abstract describes 18 patients taking part.

PubMed indexes the participants as teenagers, adults and middle-aged adults, both men and women.

Plasma glucagon and glucose concentrations were measured before and after a standardized liquid meal in 2 separate randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies of pramlintide administration to patients with type 1 diabetes.

How the Study Was Run

The design is described as randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover and parallel-group.

Because people in this Amylin (Islet Amyloid Polypeptide) study were split into groups at random, differences between the groups are less likely to reflect who happened to join each one.

Neither the patients nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Amylin (Islet Amyloid Polypeptide), so expectations could not easily colour the readings.

A placebo (an inactive look-alike) gave the Amylin (Islet Amyloid Polypeptide) group a baseline to be compared against.

Each person switched between Amylin (Islet Amyloid Polypeptide) and the comparison at some point, usually with a gap in between.

What Was Measured

Preclinical animal studies indicate that these complementary effects may result from at least 2 independent mechanisms: a slowing of nutrient delivery to the small intestine and a suppression of nutrient-stimulated glucagon secretion.

The subject headings attached to it are Amyloid, Blood Glucose, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1, Fasting, Food, Glucagon and Hypoglycemic Agents.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Amylin (Islet Amyloid Polypeptide) in 18 patients.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

The publication is from 2002 (Metabolism: clinical and experimental), a journal based in United States.

More context: the Amylin (Islet Amyloid Polypeptide) compound page, all human trials.