Insulin binding to erythrocytes before and after changing from porcine to biosynthetic human insulin in children with type-I diabetes.

The binding of [125I]insulin to isolated erythrocytes from diabetic children (n = 27) before (group a) as well as one and five months after changing from porcine to biosynthetic human insulin (groups b and c) was investigated. An analysis of variance of the binding parameters, determined by a nonlinear regression procedure, yielded statistically significant differences between the receptor affinities Ka as well as between the receptor concentrations Xo of the groups a and b, a and c and b and c. (formula: see text). The results suggest that the change from porcine insulin to biosynthetic human insulin induces a short-term as well as long-term increase in the affinity, and a decrease in the concentration of the erythrocyte insulin receptors.