Psoriasis Drug Could Help Treat Diabetes Without Need for Insulin: Study

A trial with 72 patients showed that ustekinumab, a drug used to treat psoriasis, could help treat early stages of Type 1 diabetes in adolescents.

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A drug currently prescribed to treat psoriasis could help treat the early stages of Type 1 diabetes in children and young people without the need for insulin, a new study finds.

The study, published in Nature Medicine, found that ustekinumab, an established immunotherapy drug used since 2009, can target the immune cells driving Type 1 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes occurs when the immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing cells. Traditional treatment options leave a person dependent on insulin injections, but researchers have been developing ways to slow or halt this attack on the immune system. Researchers from Cardiff University, King’s College London, Swansea University, and the University of Calgary noted that patients might not require insulin injections if such treatments can stop the attack before all the insulin-making cells have been destroyed.

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This is where ustekinumab comes in. It has been used to treat patients with immune conditions, including severe psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, severe Crohn’s disease, and severe ulcerative colitis. According to the researchers, the immunotherapy drug works by reducing the amount of Th17.1 immune cells in the blood.

“These cells make up only 1 in 1000 of blood immune cells, but they seem to play an important role in destroying insulin producing cells,” King’s College professor and co-author Tim Tree said in a press release. “It targets the trouble-making cells, while leaving 99% of the immune system intact—a great example of precision medicine.”

First Clinical Trial

The trial included 72 adolescents between the ages of 12 and 18 who were recently diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. Sixty-two were included in the analysis, with 41 prescribed ustekinumab and 21 given a placebo. After one year, researchers found that C-peptide levels, an indicator that the body is producing insulin, were 49 percent higher in the patients receiving ustekinumab.

The research team found that rather than targeting insulin, ustekinumab addressed the immune system and its insulin-suppressing processes. When Th17.1 cells were targeted, participants’ bodies continued to produce insulin.

“If such treatments can be started early, before all the insulin-making cells are lost, this could prevent or reduce the need for insulin,” study co-author Dr. Danijela Tatovic, a clinical research fellow at Cardiff University, said in the press release.

More Research Needed

The researchers noted that the study only included patients already needing insulin. Trials with prediabetic patients are warranted to determine whether ustekinumab can help prevent or reduce the need for insulin.

“It would be better if we could treat them at an earlier stage, while the children are still well, and prevent them needing insulin,” clinical professor Colin Dayan from Cardiff University said in the press release.

A simple finger-prick antibody test can detect Type 1 diabetes in children years before they will require insulin. Researchers say combining such preventative measures with ustekinumab could help prevent reliance on insulin.