Insulin Timeline

  • 1800

    Researchers developed a chemical that detects sugar in urine
  • 1848

    This is the first linking of glycogen to diabetes and metabolism a doctor discovered that glycogen is secreted liver and believed it was the same sugar exhibited in the urine of diabetics.
  • 1869

    german medical student by the name of Langerhans discovers that there are specialized cells in the pancreas that produce the hormone insulin
  • 1889

    discovered that animals that had their pancreas removed would get diabetes
  • 1911

    The Benedict's solution is invented and leads to a new more efficient way to test for sugar in the urine which leads to easier diagnosis
  • 1921

    Insulin is "discovered" when a Romanian scientist published a paper on how he was able to isolate pancreatic insulin. This lead to tests on animals, Doctors gave the first insulin shots to a dog that no longer had a pancreas, the dog's diabetes was controlled
  • 1922

    A young boy with diabetes was injected with insulin and was able to control his diabetes which led to it being mass produced in North America
  • 1940s

    a uniform insulin syringe is invented which led to more sustainable management of diabetes
  • 1964

    the first strips for testing blood glucose level are used
  • 1970

    The 1970's are when the very first blood glucose meter is introduced
  • 1978

    The first testing of recombinant DNA insulin is shared amongst the people which allowed the manufacturing of genetically engineered human type insulin.
  • 1983

    the first biosynthetic human insulin is introduced to the public
  • 1986

    the introduction of insulin pen delivery systems
  • 1990

    External insulin pumps are also made more available to people, decreasing the need to inject themselves constantly with insulin