Diabetes patients could soon be able to take a pill to control their condition instead of repeated injections, researchers have claimed.
Experts at the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen have found insulin can be covered by a coating which means it could eventually be taken orally.
Currently, the drug has to be injected so it is not broken down before it reaches the bloodstream.
The development offers hope to patients with a phobia of needles.
The research, presented at the British Pharmaceutical Conference in Manchester, shows that the coating means that insulin is protected from enzyme breakdown.