(Image source from: Indian scientists discover oral pills for diabetics})

Now bid adieu to stinging insulin pricks! Indian scientists have discovered a painless alternative to the daily shots —an insulin pill for diabetics — the first of its kind of drug to be made in the world.

What is being deemed as a big breakthrough in medical science, Indian scientists have successfully clocked their first milestone towards the long-sought insulin pill — an advancement other researchers have been trying to put in place since 1930.

Published in the American Chemical Society journal, the big advance could someday not only eliminate the "ouch" factor, but also get needle-wary diabetics to take their medicine in time.

Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body doesn't make enough insulin, and type 2 diabetes occurs when the body doesn't make or use insulin very well, causing glucose to remain in the blood, which can lead to serious problems.

To overcome these glitches, 'Sanyog Jain from India's National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research combined two approaches to shield insulin from the digestive enzymes and then get it into the blood. They packaged insulin in tiny sacs made of lipids, or fats called liposomes, which are already used in some treatments. Then, they wrapped the liposomes in layers of protective molecules called polyelectrolytes. To help these "layersomes" get absorbed into the bloodstream, they attached folic acid, a kind of vitamin B that has been shown to help transport liposomes across the intestinal wall into the blood,' reports Kounteya Sinha, a senior reporter with Time of India.

Libby Dowling, care advisor at Diabetes UK, said "Oral insulin could make a big difference to the lives of people with diabetes. Children, elderly people and those with a phobia of needles would benefit particularly if and when insulin capsules become a safe and effective treatment for the condition. Although more research is needed, Diabetes UK would very much like to see insulin capsules one day become a reality."

She added, "Many people with Type 2 diabetes take diabetes tablets. They are not the same as insulin. As yet insulin cannot be taken in tablet form because it would be broken down in the stomach before it could work. Diabetes tablets work in different ways to lower blood glucose levels - for example by stimulating the pancreas to produce more insulin, or by helping the body to use the insulin that it does produce more effectively"

With India's diabetes rate expected to cross the 100 million mark by 2030, this pill could prove to be life-saving for many ailing sugar patients.

AW: Suchorita Dutta Choudhury