Targeting Brain Could Be New Path for Treating Type I Diabetes

A research finding by investigators at the University of Washington (UW) Diabetes Institute shows that diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a dangerous acute complication of type I diabetes (TID), can be resolved by administering the hormone leptin. The research, published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation , suggests that DKA, currently considered the result of insulin deficiency, may also be driven by the brain’s perceived lack of energy stores. It also points to the possibility of treating TID in a way that doesn’t require daily insulin injections.

“This new framework challenges that conventional wisdom about insulin deficiency as the sole cause of diabetic ketoacidosis that has been widely accepted for decades,” said Michael Schwartz, MD, a professor of medicine, division of metab