Sink your teeth into this one. Generex, the company that is quickly making a name for itself as the leader in drug delivery for metabolic diseases through the inner lining of the mouth, announced that it has been granted the first patent for its medicinal gum platform. The patent is titled Compositions for Oral Transmucosal Delivery of Metformin. It covers claims to the composition, processes, and methodologies for the delivery of an oral transmucosal metformin composition via the oral mucosal membrane for absorption. Long story short: you chew it.

Metformin is a generic drug used to regulate blood sugar levels by reducing the amount of glucose produced by the liver. The popular brand names of Metformin include: Glucophage, Diabex, Diaformin, Fortamet, Riomet, and Glumetza. Metformin is the only anti-diabetic drug that has been proven to reduce the cardiovascular complications of diabetes, as evidenced in a large study of overweight patients with diabetes. Metformin has been in use around the world for more than 30 years. It remains the most prescribed drug for Type-2 diabetes, a testimony to its efficacy and its prominent place in diabetes therapy.

Rose C. Perri, the Generex Chief Operating Officer commented, "we are very pleased to receive the first patent for our metformin gum product, a product that compliments our flagship product, Generex Oral-lyn™, and related diabetes pipeline". On a personal note, when I first learned about this development from the masterminds at Generex I was definitely excited. But now that the train has left the station, I'm happy to share this news with the gum-chewing, metformin-taking, diabetes population. It's all about the delivery and this one is definitely special.