Medtronic plc’s insulin pump adds more than six hours to the time-in-range for people with type 1 diabetes compared to the current standard of care, a recently published study found. The closed loop system also provides a far simpler method for controlling blood glucose levels compared to the multiple daily insulin injections and intermittent scans from a continuous glucose monitor widely employed today. The Adapt study results appeared in Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology on Sept. 1.

Nuralogix Corp. has trained machine learning models to interpret blood flow patterns in facial scans to predict whether an individual has prediabetes. The model runs on a smartphone app, which could increase awareness of the risk of developing diabetes in a significant portion of the population.

Second Sight Medical Products Inc. completed a reverse merger with Nano Precision Medical Inc. which leaves the controversial visual prosthetics company holding 23% of the new company, now called Vivani Medical Inc. The deal brings together two unlikely partners, with Nano Precision targeting development of miniaturized, subdermal drug implants for chronic diseases such as diabetes, while Second Sight has focused on bringing its Orion visual prosthetic device to market. The company now trades on the Nasdaq under the symbol VANI.

Precision Diabetes Inc. (PDI) entered an exclusive agreement with Dxgen Corp. to introduce and distribute the Epithod Autodx point-of-care analyzer and multiple diabetes tests that run on the system within the U.S. The first available tests will include hemoglobin A1c, C-reactive protein and albumin, with the portfolio of tests expected to grow quickly.

A rash of recent announcements in the diabetes market speak to the brisk pace of developments and keen competition in the field. Dexcom Inc. reported good news in the U.K. and Europe, offset by delays in the U.S., while Insulet Corp. gave investors assurance that it was moving full speed ahead in the release of its Omnipod artificial pancreas system. On the pharma side, Arecor Therapeutics plc signed a contingent agreement to acquire Tetris Pharma Ltd. and commercialize Ogluo in the U.K., E.U. and other countries.

Better Therapeutics Inc. reported that the pivotal trial for its BT-001 prescription digital therapy (PDT) demonstrated significant decreases in hemoglobin A1c at 90 days that improved further at 180 days in participants with type 2 diabetes. The study showed a clear dose-response between greater use of the PDT and improvements in blood glucose levels.

Diabeloop SA has just closed a series C funding round, securing $73 million to ramp global expansion for its DBL1 integrated smart system for patients with type 1 diabetes. “This will allow us to boost commercial roll-out and continue pursuing our growth strategy into Europe, the U.S. and Asia,” Erik Huneker, CEO of Diabeloop, told BioWorld.