It appears 2 drug makers are collaborating and as stated below will give Merck some competition in this new class of drugs which is using the action of
hormones to increase the body’s usage of sugar. Diabetes treatments are getting a lot attention and are coming in different shapes and sizes, like the one from Mannkind waiting FDA approval for one that you inhale. BD
Mannkind Submits Afresa –Inhaled Insulin Device/Drug to the FDA
The FDA just approved saxagliptin, a diabetes medicine that will be co-marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca. The drug, which will be sold under the brand name Onglyza, is in a relatively new class, called DPP-4 inhibitors, that can be taken along with older diabetes drugs.
“DPP-4 inhibitors are a class of compounds that work by affecting the action of natural hormones in the body called incretins. Incretins decrease elevated blood sugar levels (glucose) by increasing the body's utilization of sugar, mainly through increasing insulin production in the pancreas, and by reducing the liver's production of glucose.”
Until now, Merck’s Januvia has been the only drug in the class on the market in this country. But in late 2006, when Januvia was approved by the FDA, you wouldn’t have guessed that Merck would have the market to itself for so long. That it has is a sign of the tough safety scrutiny the FDA has given to many new drugs in recent years
Saxagliptin (Onglyza) Approved for Diabetes Approved by FDA - Health Blog - WSJ