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Permalink Reply by Annie on February 11, 2012 at 10:57pm

Hahaha! I'm a biochemist as well, and am too lazy to do so :) I do know of some Type 1s who are on it. However, it is a controversial drug as it has been linked to thyroid disease. Thanks to Paula Dean, I'm sure it will stir up even more controversy.

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Permalink Reply by Brian (bsc) on February 12, 2012 at 8:54am

Victoza has not been approved for use in T1s. It is however being prescribed by some doctors for T1 use, primarily for weight loss (and some might argue for better blood sugars). Bernstein apparenty has been prescribing Byetta for T1s with some success, and I believe he now has moved on to Victoza as it is just as effective with only one injection per day.

Byetta, Victoza and now Bydureon are GLP-1 analogs. They immitate the incretin signaling that ocurrs when we eat. Normally, one of the things that incretins signal is the generation of the hormone Amylin. Amylin is produced by the beta cells and counteracts the normal production of glucose by your liver as well as slowing the gastric emptying and reducing food intake. Amylin production is destroyed in T1s. Symlin actually is a synthetic form of Amylin and is intended to replace it's action in T1s. Apparently the GLP-1 analogs are able to achieve some of the same benefits (as Symlin) for T1s although the mechanism is apparently not well understood.

I'd like to hear more about the experiment you are taking part in. I hope it is a clinical trial.

ps. Victoza has been linked to higher rates of thyroid cancer in rats and mice, although the effect has as yet not been observed in humans. It is not recommended for anyone who has biomarkers suggesting thyroid cancer. The medication is actually highly regarded by many, but as always we have to be alert to downsides.

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