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A discovery of Melbourne scientists could transform insulin treatments for diabetic patients around the world.
An international collaboration, co-led by researchers from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, has produced the first 3D image showing how insulin triggers the reduction of blood sugar levels by cells.
The work could help develop faster-acting, more sustainable insulin-based treatments to make life easier for people with diabetes, experts said.
It has already been shown that insulin gives cells the means to lower their blood sugar by binding to a receptor on the surface of the cell.
However, there was uncertainty about exactly what happened during this interaction.
"Current insulin therapies are not optimal because they were designed without this missing piece of the puzzle," AAP associate professor Mike Lawrence said.
The three-dimensional image, fruit of two decades of work, shows "in great detail" how the interaction of insulin with cellular receptors.
Associate Professor Lawrence said that this discovery meant that it was now possible to create a "new generation" of insulin-based treatments that more closely mimicked the body's insulin.
"The goal is simply to make patients' lives a little more manageable," he said.
The research is published in Nature Communications.
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