Abstract
Type 2 diabetes is a progressive disorder characterized by continuous deterioration in β-cell function requiring an escalation of therapeutic efforts in order to maintain glycemic control. Recent studies have demonstrated that the current antidiabetic treatments, including metformin, sulfonylureas and thiazolidinediones, are not durable, resulting in an increase of hemoglobin A1c over time with all three therapies. Many current antidiabetic treatments (sulfonylureas, thiazolidinediones and insulin) are associated with the undesirable feature of weight gain. In addition, sulfonylureas and insulin are associated with an increased risk for hypoglycemia. The unsatisfactory results with the current pharmacological therapies for Type 2 diabetes have encouraged the development of a number of novel treatments. Among these are the incretin-based therapies, which include glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1 receptor agonists; this article focuses on one of these agonists, the human GLP-1 analog liraglutide. Liraglutide has been approved for use in Type 2 diabetic individuals in several countries, including Europe, the USA and Japan.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.