Feline Diabetes Study • Scout Bio

Shape The Future of Feline Diabetes Management

Feline diabetes mellitus can dramatically decrease the quality of life for both cats and their owners. The common clinical signs of diabetes are drinking and urinating excessively, losing weight despite a normal appetite, sometimes an increased appetite, and occasionally the development of neurologic problems in the rear legs. Current standard therapy involves injecting insulin-(usually twice daily) and feeding low carbohydrate diets.

Often owners find the prospect of administering injections to their cats daunting and the strict regimen of twice daily injections and feedings can be difficult to fit into a busy lifestyle. Unfortunately, not treating the cats is simply not a viable option and usually results in a rapid decline in physical health. Even with insulin treatment, some cats’ diabetes is not well controlled and this results in the continuation of the clinical signs and problems.

Scout Bio is currently undertaking a clinical trial evaluating a one-time treatment designed to replace or support insulin treatment in cats for the management of feline diabetes mellitus.

Participation in this trial will provide opportunity to help the individual pet, and may potentially help many future pet owners improve their beloved cats’ quality of life if diagnosed with this disease.

What is feline diabetes mellitus?

Most diabetic cats appear to have disease similar to human Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus which is primarily defined as a combined problem with insulin production by the beta-cells in the pancreas, as well as a decrease in the sensitivity to the normal action of insulin (insulin resistance). In cats, one of the most common factors contributing to insulin resistance is obesity which reduces insulin sensitivity.

Lack of insulin production and decreased sensitivity to insulin causes the glucose (sugar) in the blood to become very high leading to the clinical signs. Very high levels of blood glucose also hurt the beta-cells in the pancreas, leading to further reductions in insulin production.

Substantial progress has been made in the treatment of human type 2 diabetes, even in the early stages of the disease. However, insulin therapy remains the only FDA-approved treatment for diabetes in cats.

How does current therapy work?

In normal cats, insulin is produced by the beta cells of the pancreas and in diabetes. In diabetes, for many different reasons, those cells cease functioning in the way they should.

Current therapy aims to replace the insulin that the cat’s body no longer makes by injecting insulin twice daily. Giving insulin in the right amounts may bring the blood sugar levels down. If the blood glucose can be brought under control for the majority of a 24-hour period each day then the clinical signs will be reduced to manageable levels. Too much insulin can cause the blood sugar to drop to dangerous levels, so there has to be a careful balance made between maintaining ideal blood glucose levels and administering too much insulin which may result in life threatening low blood sugar levels.

Good control of blood glucose may also allow the beta-cells to ‘rest’. That rest may increase their capacity to regain some of their insulin-secreting ability. Insulin administration helps to decrease and control the excess blood glucose levels and complement whatever insulin producing ability the cat has left. In some cases cats regain enough function to allow the insulin injections to stop. This is called diabetic remission.

How Does Scout’s Treatment Work?

Scout Bio is leading the industry, positioned at the forefront of one-time treatments for pets. By combining world-leading talent in animal health and gene therapy technology, Scout Bio has built an impressive development platform for the treatment of chronic diseases. Scout Bio is supported by leading life sciences investors and a partnership with the renowned Gene Therapy Program at the University of Pennsylvania.

The therapy used in Scout Bio’s field study is designed to instruct the cat’s body to produce a modified feline hormone called Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) by itself.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), is a hormone secreted from the intestinal tract in response to the presence of food. GLP-1 enhances insulin secretion and also protects beta cells from injury.

In humans with type 2 diabetes, the effect of GLP-1 is severely reduced or absent, contributing to the development of excessive levels of blood glucose.

GLP-1 analog drugs, such as Byetta® and Trulicity® among others, have been used for successful management of Type 2 diabetes in humans for years and have been shown to be as effective as insulin in improving control of blood sugar while reducing body weight.

GLP-1 treatment has many beneficial effects but the very short half-life of the hormone has been a significant limitation to its use in cats. By recruiting a few of the cat’s muscle cells to produce the GLP-1, our treatment may be able to overcome that limitation.

There are two early stage clinical pilot trials underway to evaluate this new therapy. The first study will evaluate whether this treatment is able to work as a stand-alone treatment for feline diabetes, or whether it will provide for improved management along with insulin and possibly allow for a reduction in the frequency of amount of insulin needed to maintain normal blood sugar values. The second study will evaluate whether this treatment, along with insulin dosing and a low carbohydrate food, can induce a higher rate of remission, and possibly a longer lasting remission of feline diabetes than insulin therapy and diet alone.

More about Gene Therapy Here

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