Diabetes drug shown to improve A1c levels in trial

SAN DIEGO Patients treated with an investigational drug for Type 2 diabetes showed improved A1c levels in the blood, according to results of a mid-stage trial released Monday.

Harbor BioSciences said it found no significant difference in A1c levels between patients taking Triolex and those taking placebo in a phase 2a trial of the drug overall, but that the drug decreased obesity-induced inflammation and insulin resistance in patients with the disease.

“Chronic tissue inflammation is emerging as a substantial cause of insulin resistance in obese patients with Type 2 diabetes, so it is important to fully explore the potential of anti-inflammatory therapeutic approaches to this disease,” University of California San Diego medicine professor and dean for scientific affairs Jerrold Olefsky said in a statement. “Triolex produced excellent anti-inflammatory, insulin-sensitizing effects in preclinical studies. The early clinical results in the more obese patients with elevated signs of inflammation show some promise and should be further explored.”