Sep 04, 2015 12:36 PM EDT By Rashmi Kalia, UniversityHerald Reporter

A new research study at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis has suggested a new method of lowering blood sugar levels by slowing the production of glucose in the liver, Times of India reports.

This strategy is likely to pave the way for more effective drugs for type 2 diabetes. 

"We think this strategy could lead to more effective drugs for type 2 diabetes," said principal investigator Brian N Finck, associate professor of medicine in the Division of Geriatrics and Nutritional Science, according to Times of India.

"A drug that shuts down glucose production has the potential to help millions of people affected by the most common form of diabetes," said Finck. 

For the study, the researchers worked on mice and showed that they could reduce glucose production in the liver and lower blood sugar levels by shutting down a liver protein that is involved in making glucose.

The research team, led by first author Kyle S McCommis, a postdoctoral research scholar, lowered the glucose production by shutting down a key protein involved in transporting pyruvate from the bloodstream into the mitochondria.

Finck worked with researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre and the biopharmaceutical company Metabolic Solutions Development Co. 

Metabolic Solutions Development Co is involved in conducting clinical trials for evaluating the drug compound MSDC-0602 as treatment for diabetes. 

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