title: Responsive materials for self-regulated insulin delivery.
abstract: With diabetes mellitus becoming an important public health concern, insulin-delivery systems are attracting increasing interest from both scientific and technological researchers. This feature article covers the present state-of-the-art glucose-responsive insulin-delivery system (denoted as GRIDS), based on responsive polymer materials, a promising system for self-regulated insulin delivery. Three types of GRIDS are discussed, based on different fundamental mechanisms of glucose-recognition, with: a) glucose enzyme, b) glucose binding protein, and c) synthetic boronic acid as the glucose-sensitive component. At the end, a personal perspective on the major issues yet to be worked out in future research is provided.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces, and Department of Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China. wuwtxmu@xmu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Weitai
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Shuiqin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D001897:Boronic Acids / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000378:metabolism; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D025461:Feedback, Physiological; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D005949:Glucose Oxidase / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007328:Insulin / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009004:Monosaccharide Transport Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D011108:Polymers / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000378:metabolism*; D011485:Protein Binding; D062165:Receptors, Artificial / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D001897:Boronic Acids; D007328:Insulin; D009004:Monosaccharide Transport Proteins; D011108:Polymers; D062165:Receptors, Artificial; D003208:Concanavalin A; D005949:Glucose Oxidase; D005947:Glucose
keywords: biological applications of polymers; diabetes; gels; insulin-delivery systems; stimuli-responsive polymers