Ultrasound-Induced Insulin Release as a Potential Novel Treatmentfor Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Therapeutic ultrasound presents a potential novel treatment for type 2 diabetes mellitus that utilizes the non-invasive application of ultrasound energy to treat secretory defects in the earlier stages of the disease. Our previous studies have shown that ultrasound is capable of stimulating insulin release from pancreatic beta cells, safely and effectively. This study aims to both examine the calcium-dependent mechanisms of ultrasound-mediated insulin release from pancreatic beta cells using three complementary modalities – carbon fiber amperometry, ELISA studies, and Ca2+ fluorescence imaging – and to study the translational potential of therapeutic ultrasound using transgenic hyperglycemic mice for safety and efficacy studies.