Keeping An Eye

Keeping an eye-medicine for diabetes?

Glaucoma is a common eye disease, leading to increase in eye pressures and blindness. Methazolamide is an oral drug used for treating glaucoma. An Australian Study, published in Diabetes Care, the official journal of the American Diabetes Association, is shining new light on this drug.

Dr Richard Simpson and co-authors studied methazolamide in 76 diabetic people with over 6 months, and observed a decrease in glucose levels in those taking the drug as compared to those not taking the agent. However, this drug was not found to be safe- as about 19% of those taking the drug developed a condition called metabolic acidosis, a serious condition where the acid levels in the body rise.

However, understanding how Methazolamide works would help scientists design newer agents that do not have this side effect. Currently, the mechanism of action of this drug is unclear- though it seems to target an area ion the mitochondria, which is power centre of the cells of the human body.