Page E. Bishop Editor

Leapin' Lizards by Page E. Bishop Published: June 2005 According to the American Diabetes Association, lizard saliva may hold the key to treating Type II diabetes. Yes, that’s correct. Lizard saliva. Early last month, the Food and Drug Admistration announced its approval of Byetta, the first in a new class of diabetes management drugs that function like human hormones. The active ingredient in Byetta functions just like a hormone found in the venomous saliva of the desert dwelling Gila monster—a giant lizard indigenous to the southwest states of the U.S. Feeding only four times per year, the Gila monster turns its pancreas off for months at a time. When it is time to eat again, it reactivates hormones needed for digestion. The human pancreas is similar because it secretes insulin only when blood sugar is high. In human digestion, this cycle will repeat several times per day. Soon after the link was discovered between human hormones and proteins found in the saliva of these scaly lizards, manufacturers began planning ways produce and market the drug. Now, a synthetic form of the Gila hormone is readily available to patients who qualify for treatment. Patients with type II diabetes must manually regulate body sugar levels with insulin injections or by taking oral medications. One problem with current treatments is that they may trigger insulin secretion even when blood sugar is low—which can be dangerous. Byetta works by mimicking the hormone that stimulates insulin production allowing the pancreas to function as it normally would. Byetta is not approved as a stand-alone therapy for type II diabetes and it is only prescribed as a supplement to existing medications. But according to manufacturers, this is just the beginning. In the second phase of development, they plan to introduce a long-lasting, once-a-week, injectable dose of the synthesized hormone. This news is promising for insulin-dependent diabetics who inject twice daily. Byetta could also benefit patients who do not respond well to oral medications. If you travel the dusty deserts of the Southwest, you might run into one of these loathsome lizards. But don’t get too close to the Gila—you might get bitten—and his bite is deadly. How ironic to think a creature that could kill you could one day save your life. Leapin’ lizards!

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