Chapter 3: Optimizing the Current Type 2 Diabetes Antidiabetics with Nanotechnologies: Where Do We Stand?

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is the most prominent form of diabetes worldwide. In the history of T2D, insulin resistance of liver, muscle and adipose tissue first develops with no apparent clinical signs. Hyperglycemia ensues when β-cells fail to release a sufficient insulin level into the bloodstream to compensate for insulin resistance. For lowering glycemia, the current therapeutic arsenal includes insulin sensitizers, insulin secretagogues, inhibitors of glucose absorption and reabsorption and ultimately insulin injection. The poor bioavailability and stability, as well as the mode of administration, reduce the long-term efficiency of these drugs, thereby contributing to the dramatic progression of the disease toward disabilities and early mortality risk. This chapter deals with the possible approaches offered by nanotechnology for improving the bioavailability, stability and delivery mode of the current antidiabetic drugs. Improvements provided by nanotechnology could hold promise for implementing a personalized diabetes medicine, as a key to halting the devastating damage caused by this disease.