Although metformin is the first-line drug for type-2 diabetics, research shows that it is not always effective for all type 2 individuals.
"Our study constitutes an important step towards the goal of personalized care for diabetes patients because it can contribute to ensuring that the right person receives the right care as soon as there is a diagnosis," says Charlotte Ling, professor of epigenetics at Lund University, who led the study.
Examining the effects of metformin on different patients is the first pharmacoepigenetic study in diabetes. The study looked over epigenetic factors, DNA methylation, and biomarkers.
"If it takes a long time for the patient to receive the correct treatment, there is a risk of complications due to the elevated blood sugar levels. Approximately 30 per cent of all patients with type 2 diabetes do not respond to metformin and should be given another drug right from the start. For this reason, it is important to be able to identify these patients upon diagnosis," says Charlotte Ling.
Learn more about pharmacogenomics:
"To a certain extent, pharmacoepigenetics has been used within cancer care to predict how a person will respond to a treatment, however, it has never been done in diabetes care before," says Charlotte Ling.
Source: Science Daily
