Adomeglivant

Patients with diabetes are characterised not only by compromised insulin secretion and action, but also by elevated plasma levels of the 29-amino acid peptide hormone glucagon, which hitherto has been considered a pancreas-derived hormone (produced in and secreted from alpha cells in the islets of Langerhans). In patients with diabetes, circulating glucagon concentrations are elevated in the fasting state and fail to decrease appropriately or even increase in response to an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) or after ingestion of a mixed meal. Hyperglucagonaemia is known to be a potent stimulator of hepatic glucose output, and, thus, contributes significantly to the fasting and postprandial hyperglycaemia characterising patients with diabetes. Despite intense research over the years the mechanisms behind the elevated glucagon levels in diabetes is still not clear. Recently, the investigators showed that totally pancreatectomised patients also show a hyperglucagonaemic response during OGTT, a finding that suggests that the pancreas is not the only source of glucagon production in man.
In the present project, the investigators wish to evaluate the impact of gastrointestinally derived glucagon secretion observed in totally pancreatectomised patients on postprandial glucose tolerance.
The investigators hypothesise that antagonisation of glucagon signalling (from gastrointestinally derived glucagon) in totally pancreatectomised patients will improve or perhaps normalise the patients glucose tolerance during a 75g-OGTT. In order to test this hypothesis, the investigators wish to apply the potent and selective oral antagonist of the human glucagon receptor LY2409021 and placebo, respectively.
The study is a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blinded, cross-over study.
10 healthy persons and 10 pancreatectomized patients (i.e. patients who have had their pancreata removed due to pancreatic cancer or severe chronic pancreatitis) will be subjected to two experimental days with LY2409021 and placebo, respectively, on which they will undergo an OGTT followed by a fasting period and finished off with an ad libitum meal.

In patients with type 2 diabetes, the incretin effect is markedly reduced contributing to the relative insulin deficiency that characterizes these patients. This defect is believed to be due to a decreased effect of GLP-1 and an almost ceased effect of GIP. Nevertheless, the impact of the defect on glucose tolerance is not fully understood. The so-called gastrointestinal-mediated glucose disposal (GIGD) is a measure of glucose handling, which includes the incretin effect, but also other factors affecting glucose disposal (e.g. glucagon secretion). Interestingly, patients with type 2 diabetes exhibit elevated plasma glucagon levels in the fasting state, and glucagon concentrations fail to decrease appropriately and may even increase in response to ingestion of glucose and show exaggerated increases after a mixed meal. With the current project the investigators wish to elucidate how this paradoxical glucagon response observed in patients with type 2 diabetes affects the GIGD, the incretin effect and postprandial glucose excursions.
Ten patients with type 2 diabetes and 10 healthy matched control subjects will be enrolled in this randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blinded study. The aim is to examine the effect of a glucagon receptor antagonist (GRA) on gastrointestinal-mediated glucose disposal (GIGD), incretin effect and postprandial glucose excursions in patients with type 2 diabetes and healthy controls. Participants will attend two oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT), two isoglycaemic iv glucose infusion (IIGI) and two standardised liquid meals.