Home > Journals > Journal of Biochemistry and Biophysics

Journal of Biochemistry and Biophysics

Submit your article Read this Journals View all journals
Full Text (PDF)
Original Article

GLP-1 Therapies as Essential Medicines: Opportunities and Barriers for Diabetes Care

Sachin C Narwadiya, Neha Suthar

Author Information

Licence:

Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.

Journal of Biochemistry and Biophysics 11(1):p 7-12, January 2026. | DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/rfpjbb.2582-3558.11126.1

How Cite This Article:

Sachin C Narwadiya, Neha Suthar. GLP-1 Therapies as Essential Medicines: Opportunities and Barriers for Diabetes Care. RFP Jour. of Bio. and Biophy. 2026; 11(1): 07–12.

Timeline

Received : January 16, 2026         Accepted : September 12, 2026          Published : June 25, 2026

Abstract

GLP-1 is a natural hormone that helps control blood sugar and hunger. It is released when you eat and helps the body release insulin, slows down how fast food leaves the stomach, and stops the body from making too much glucagon. These actions all help keep blood sugar levels lower. Some medicines called GLP-1 receptor agonists act like this hormone to treat type 2 diabetes and obesity by helping control blood sugar and helping people lose weight. The enzyme dipeptidyl peptidase IV can break down and stop GLP-1 from working before it leaves the gut. This shows that GLP-1 may also affect the body through nerves found in the gut and the liver, which have GLP-1 receptors. GLP-1 and its receptors are being tested to help manage type 2 diabetes. Lower levels of GLP-1 may be linked to obesity, while too much GLP-1 can cause low blood sugar after eating. This study looked at how these new diabetes medicines work in the Indian context by reviewing case studies. The results are promising and offer new hope for diabetes treatment.

References

  • 1.   World Health Organization. WHO guideline on the use of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) therapies for the treatment of obesity in adults. WHO; 2025.
  • 2.   Drucker DJ. The biology of incretin hormones. Cell Metab. 2016.
  • 3.   Frias JP, et al. Tirzepatide versus semaglutide once weekly in patients with type 2 diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2021.
  • 4.   Marso SP, et al. Liraglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in type 2 diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2016.
  • 5.   Mathieu C, et al. GLP-1 receptor agonists in type 1 diabetes: A review. Diabetes Care. 2020.
  • 6.   Wilding JPH, et al. Once-weekly semaglutide in adults with overweight or obesity. N Engl J Med. 2021.
  • 7.   World Health Organization. Obesity and overweight: Fact sheet. WHO; 2025.
  • 8.   World Health Organization. Obesity as a major risk factor for noncommunicable diseases. WHO; 2025.
  • 9.   World Health Organization. Global economic impact of obesity. WHO; 2025.
  • 10.   World Health Organization. WHO issues global guideline on GLP-1 medicines for obesity. WHO; 2025.
  • 11.   World Health Organization. WHO model list of essential medicines: 2025 update. WHO; 2025.
  • 12.   World Health Organization. WHO acceleration plan to stop obesity. WHO; 2025.
  • 13.   World Health Organization. Falsified and substandard medical products: Public health implications. WHO; 2025.
  • 14.   Marso SP, Daniels GH, Brown-Frandsen K, et al. Liraglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in type 2 diabetes. N Engl J Med. 2016;375(4):311–322.
  • 15.   Wilding JPH, Batterham RL, Calanna S, et al. Once-weekly semaglutide in adults with overweight or obesity. N Engl J Med. 2021;384(11):989–1002.
  • 16.   Gerstein HC, Colhoun HM, Dagenais GR, et al. Dulaglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in type 2 diabetes (REWIND). Lancet. 2019;394(10193):121–130.
  • 17.   Buse JB, Nauck M, Forst T, et al. Exenatide once daily versus twice daily in patients with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2011;34(2):282–288.
  • 18.   Marso SP, Bain SC, Consoli A, et al. Semaglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes (SUSTAIN-6). N Engl J Med. 2016;375(19):1834–1844.
  • 19.   Nauck MA, Meier JJ. Incretin therapies: Highlighting common features and differences in the modes of action. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2019;21(Suppl 1):21–35.
  • 20.   Drucker DJ. Mechanisms of action and therapeutic application of GLP-1. Cell Metab. 2018;27(4):740–756.
  • 21.   Anjana, R. M., Pradeepa, R., Deepa, M., Datta, M., Sudha, V., Unnikrishnan, R., & Mohan, V. (2017). Prevalence of diabetes and prediabetes in urban and rural India: Phase I results of the Indian Council of Medical Research–India Diabetes (ICMR–INDIAB) study. Diabetologia, 60(5), 852–860. https://doi.org/10.1007/ s00125-017-4276-2.
  • 22.   Kalra, S., Gupta, Y., & Baruah, M. P. (2016). GLP-1 receptor agonists in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus: An Indian perspective. Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, 20(5), 707–715. https://doi.
  • 23.   Mohan, V., Unnikrishnan, R., Shobana, R., & Anjana, R. M. (2019). Pharmacologic management of type 2 diabetes in India: Current status and future directions. The Journal of the Association of Physicians of India, 67(Suppl 3), 11–18.
  • 24.   Gupta, Y., Kalra, S., Baruah, M. P., & Singla, R. (2018). Weight-centric management of type 2 diabetes: Role of GLP-1 receptor agonists in Asian Indians. Diabetes Therapy, 9(4), 1351– 1362. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13300-018-0453-1.
  • 25.   Indian Council of Medical Research. (2018). ICMR guidelines for management of type 2 diabetes mellitus. New Delhi, India: ICMR. Retrieved from https://www.icmr.gov.in
  • 26.   eal-World Usage of Once-Daily Oral Semaglutide in Adults with Type 2 Diabetes: Findings from Pioneer Real India, Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, 2025. PMID: 41229720.

Data Sharing Statement

There are no additional data available. All raw data and code are available upon request.

Funding

This research received no funding.

Author Contributions

All authors contributed significantly to the work and approve its publication.

Ethics Declaration

Provide information related to the Ethics Committee approval with approval number OR write, This article does not involve any human or animal subjects, and therefore does not require ethics approval.

Acknowledgements

We would like to express our gratitude to the patients, their families, and all those who have contributed to this study.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

About this article

Cite this article

Sachin C Narwadiya, Neha Suthar. GLP-1 Therapies as Essential Medicines: Opportunities and Barriers for Diabetes Care. RFP Jour. of Bio. and Biophy. 2026; 11(1): 07–12.

Licence:

Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.

Received Accepted Published
January 16, 2026 September 12, 2026 June 25, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21088/rfpjbb.2582-3558.11126.1

Keywords

GLP-1 Receptor AgonistsType 2 Diabetes MellitusObesity ManagementCardiometabolic RiskPublic Health Policy

Article Level Metrics

Last Updated

Tuesday 09 June 2026, 23:31:59 (IST)

498

Accesses

2
139
00

Citations


NA
NA
NA

Download citation


Article Keywords

Keyword Highlighting

Highlight selected keywords in the article text.


Timeline

Received January 16, 2026
Accepted September 12, 2026
Published June 25, 2026

licence

Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.


Access this article

Reprint Order Form
Buy this Article
Institutional Subscriptions

Share