The Discovery of Insparin: A Game Changer for Diabetes and Steatosis

35 years ago Dr. Nikhail Dhurandhar and his team of researchers discovered that avian adenovirus SMAM-1, and then human adenovirus Ad36 induce obesity when animals are experimentally infected with the viruses (and that humans infected with these viruses are at greater risk for developing obesity). For the past 9 years, researchers at Texas Tech University in the Department of Nutritional Sciences have been working with Dr. Dhurandhar furthering this study. While investigating the effects of Ad36, they serendipitously realized that animals infected with Ad36 have lower (better) glucose levels. Considering that it would be challenging to use a virus as an anti-diabetic agent, they set out to identify a gene / protein of Ad36 that is responsible for its anti-diabetic effect.

Researchers have identified (and others confirmed) that the early gene E4, open reading frame 1 (E4orf1) of Ad36 made a protein that improved diabetes in animals. These experiments used transgenic mice, or lentivirus or Adeno associated viruses as vectors to deliver the protein to tissue. However, these approaches would be hard to receive the FDA approval for use as a drug. As a result, they developed the use of nanoparticles to deliver the protein in mice, which successfully improved diabetes and liver fat deposition, despite a very high fat diet.