Insulin, how its made

how insulin is made using gene technology

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• DNA
• diabetes
• gene
• technology
• insulin

[porkinsulin]

@DarthHater100 I've had diabetes for 37 years and perform much better with the pork insulin. I wish the Humulin (not human) insulin worked better but it doesn't. I'm sure other diabetics are fine with the Humulin (not human) insulin. Not all of us are. Pork insulin isn't perfect at all but the highs and lows aren't nearly as bad with the pork insulin. I couldn't control my sugars on the Humulin insulin. As bitter as you are you must be taking the Humulin. It happens with this insulin.

[DarthHater100]

@deanjean71 More accurate Carpenter metaphor: You give a carpenter (diabetics) a screwdriver (rDNA insulin) to screw in a screw, and some people insist for no good reason that because it contains synthetic materials it not as good as the screwdriver that uses natural materials. Then they say they BELIEVE its better because its natural and want to pay three times the price to use it. That's fine, but then they go around claiming it IS better (for no good reason) and can't back up what they say.

[DarthHater100]

What do you mean, "disagree with me". All I am saying are facts: There are no studies saying porcine is better, and a MAJOR consensus that human synthetic insulin is fine. That is not my opinion, those are facts about the science and the consensus. Maybe there IS something to the pig insulin that makes it better. So if it's true, why doesn’t anyone prove it?  Don’t just tell me lots of people believe it, therefore its true or that it is gaining popularity therefore it's true.

[DarthHater100]

I agree, people should have access to whatever they want it they're willing to pay for it, but there is an ethical component, as selling a medicine that doesn't do what it is claimed to do is wrong. The only people supporting porcine insulin are non-experts on message boards, and basically there is major consensus that insulin is fine. I suspect there is only a placebo effect gained from the pig insulin, but I can't find any studies or reliable sources and neither can anyone else.

[MrRisca1988]

Cont... of the Insulin Dependent Diabetes Trust - India where a bit wordy/scientific explaination for all of this is written by Dr. Anil S. Bhoraskar MD who ask which should be usedm, Animal vs Recombinant, along with a section about hypoglycaemia. Please remember thou that this is written from an indian perspective where circumstances are quite different expecially in regards to the cost of recombinant insulin. Hope this helps.

[MrRisca1988]

Cont... The secondary problems with animal insulin were extracting it, making sure it was not contaminated with any bovine diseases, and due to more advanced science this is now possible, so while the % of allergic response is now less it is not as low as 5%. In regards to what do patients with recombinant insulin do... nothing can be done as thee IAA would attack any form of insulin, where recombinant or animal. I would refer you to this link

[MrRisca1988]

@deanjean71 since treatment of type I diabetes with animal insulin in 1922 there has always been problems with resistance, and this is due to the fact of type 1 diabetes being an autoimmune disease. Auto-antibodies for insulin (IAA) in the blood are one of the major indicators of the disease. The percentage of patient who have allergic resonses to animal insulin is between 40-50%. The 5% you quoted relates to a relatively rare reaction to injection, forming a lump due to the immune system.

[DarthHater100]

@deanjean71 Thanks for your comments. Could you point me to a reliable source that verifies that the C-peptide is included with the porcine insulin, because the C-peptide is removed as a post-transcriptional modification in pigs, just like it is in humans. I recognize that the C-peptide does have bioactivity and might be beneficial but the C-peptide is a component of proinsulin, not insulin. I am genuinely curious, and I am not tying to argue with you. Where do you get your information?