Dasiglucagon rapidly reverses hypoglycaemia in type 1 diabetes

The ready-to-use, next-generation glucagon analogue in aqueous formulation, namely dasiglucagon, has performed well in a phase III study of adult patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D), resulting in fast and effective reversal of hypoglycaemia.

A total of 170 adult patients with T1D were randomized to receive a single subcutaneous injection of 0.6 mg dasiglucagon, placebo, or 1 mg reconstituted glucagon during controlled insulin-induced hypoglycaemia.

The primary endpoint of time to plasma glucose recovery (defined as an increase of ≥20 mg/dL from baseline without rescue intravenous glucose) was much shorter with dasiglucagon than placebo (median 10 minutes, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 10–10 vs 40 minutes, 95 percent CI, 30–40; p<0.001). The result was also slightly better than with reconstituted glucagon (median 12 minutes, 95 percent CI, 10–12).

Plasma glucose recovery occurred within 15 minutes in all but one patient (99 percent) in the dasiglucagon group. This number was superior compared to placebo (2 percent; p<0.001) and comparable to glucagon (95 percent). Similar results were seen for the other investigated timepoints, such as at 10, 20, and 30 minutes after dosing.

In terms of safety, nausea and vomiting were the most frequent adverse effects. This was consistent with the safety profile of glucagon.

The findings underscore the utility of dasiglucagon for treating severe hypoglycaemia in T1D.