Prior to the discovery of insulin, diabetes was dreaded as a disease leading to death. It was known that a rise in the sugar level in the body worsened the condition of diabetic individuals and that the sole treatment of diabetes known to people was to restrict the dietary intake of sugars (‘’The discovery of insulin”, n.d., para. 1).
During the nineteenth century, examination of patients who succumbed to diabetes revealed that the pancreas was damaged. In 1869, Paul Langerhans discovered that a group of cells called beta cells, whose function was unidentified, existed within the pancreatic tissue and were eventually termed as islets of Langerhans that produce the hormone insulin (“The discovery of insulin”, n.d., para. 2).
In 1889, German researchers, Oskar Minkowski and Joseph von Mering, demonstrated that the extraction of pancreas from a dog resulted in diabetes (”People and Discoveries”, n.d., para. 2). Nevertheless, when the connection between the pancreas and the intestine was cut off, the dog suffered from trivial digestive ailments without diabetes.
Frederick Banting was born in November 1891, in Ontario, Canada. He received a degree in medicine in the University of Toronto. He joined the army during World War I and was awarded the Military Cross for Heroism, owing to his nobility. After the war, he finished his residency in orthopedic medicine. He was interested in Diabetes, when he once read an article on pancreas. In 1920, Banting, conceived the idea that the digestive juices released from the pancreatic tissue may impede the secretion from the pancreas . His sagacity is apparent from his objective to join the pancreatic ducts and inhibit its ability to produce secretion. He would then preserve the antidiabetic secretion from the pancreas. With the assistance of his colleague Charles Best, he blocked the flow of digestive juices from the pancreas to the intestine and observed that the digestive cells of the pancreas were destroyed and engulfed by the immune system . They extracted residual islet cells of Langerhans from the pancreas and administered this extract in diabetic dogs without pancreas. To their wonder, they discovered that the extracts were able to regulate the unusually high blood sugar levels of the dogs and imparted them with the ability to survive for many months. The dogs were healthier and recuperated from the diabetic complications such as excessive thirst, hunger and frequent urination.
This serendipitous discovery was possible due to the perseverance of Banting, who obtained the laboratory amenities and equipment with a lot of persuasion. Despite his false impression regarding the original idea of obtaining the extract, Banting battled through the misinterpretation and successfully discovered the hormone insulin. He encountered societal barriers with his discovery, being an unsuccessful medical practitioner with insubstantial practice, advanced degrees, publications or teaching experience . His determination is evident from the fact that he always confronted societal pressure, opposed his family and sacrificed his loved ones, in his quest for a treatment for diabetes .
REFERENCES
Bankston, J. (2001). Frederick Banting and the Discovery of Insulin (Unlocking the Secrets of Science. Mitchell Lane Pub Inc.
Harris, S. (1947). Banting's Miracle: The Story of the Discoverer of Insulin. The Journal of the American Medical Association, 134(11).
People and Discoveries. (n.d.). Retrieved from Pbs.org: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/dm22in.html
The discovery of Insulin. (n.d.). Retrieved from Nobelprize.org: http://www.nobelprize.org/educational/medicine/insulin/discovery-insulin.html
