Exploring how real-world conditions impact insulin activity
Insulin is an essential medication for people living with diabetes (PwD). What truly matters is whether insulin remains active during treatment – able to bind to its receptor and regulate blood sugar levels. At DCB, we investigate how storage and handling influence insulin activity, aiming to shed light onto this hidden factor in diabetes management.
The challenge
Insulin therapy assumes that every injection works as intended. Yet, insulin is a protein and sensitive to its environment. Heat, light, and agitation can alter its structure – and with it, its biological activity.
Currently, most methods measure how much insulin is present, but not whether it is still active. This knowledge gap leaves patients, healthcare providers, and industry without reliable insights into insulin’s real-life performance.
Our Research Focus
We investigate insulin activity under real-world conditions to:
Identify stress factors
that reduce activity
Develop reference methods
to measure activity loss
Build the scientific foundation
for future monitoring tools and improved therapies
Methods & Approach
To quantify insulin activity under real-world stress, we combine functional bioassays with state-of-the-art structural analyses:
Functional readouts
Quantifying the biological activity of insulin via receptor activation and downstream signaling.
Structural characterization
Using advanced (bio)analytical tools to determine the 3D structure of insulin and insulin–insulin receptor interaction dynamics.
Why Our Research Matters
A deeper understanding of insulin activity will:
- Improve treatment safety by ensuring reliable dosing
- Reduce uncertainty caused by degraded insulin
- Enable new technologies for drug stability testing
- Support patients and healthcare providers with actionable knowledge
Collaboration
The Insulin Activity focus area at DCB brings together researchers, clinicians, and patient representatives. Through collaborations with academia and industry, we aim to establish new standards for understanding and safeguarding insulin therapy.
Publications & Scientific Output
Our research on insulin activity is continuously generating new insights. Below is a selection of key outputs and upcoming contributions:
- Kokona D C, Dobitz S, Schinz M Quantifying the Biological Activity of Thermally Stressed InsulinS In Vitro. Abstract submitted to ATTD 2026.
- Heinemann L, Dobitz S, Schinz M Metabolic Activity of Insulin and Heat: Challenges for People Living with Diabetes. Submitted to the Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology.
- Dobitz S, Kokona D C, Schinz M, et al. Trends in Analytical and Bioactive Methods to Assess Insulin Stability and Activity – Principles, Biases, and Applications. Manuscript in preparation.
Projects in this focus area
DCB Research AG
Freiburgstrasse 3
3010 Bern
Switzerland