METAL COMPLEXES IN THE MANAGEMENT OF DIABETES MELLITUS: A NEW THERAPEUTIC STRATEGY

Abstract

The medicinal uses and applications of metals and metal complexes are of increasing clinical and commercial importance.More than 2 - 8% of world’s population is suffering from diabetes. The correlation of diabetes and an imbalance in metal makes metal -based therapy as an attractive proposition. The development of anti-diabetic metal complexes replacing insulin injection to regulate sugar levels appears to be interesting. It has been understood that control of the glucose level in the blood plasma has been achieved by administration of vanadium and zinc in form of inorganic salts. Number of vanadium and other metal complexes has been developed and all of which have shown insulin-mimetic properties. This paper mainly focus extensive role of metal and its complexes in biological systems and its therapeutic applications. Keyword: Diabetes, Metals, Insulin-mimetic activity, Pancreatic Beta-Cell.