Thiazolidinediones(antidiabetic)

Thiazolidinediones
eg-Pioglitazone    (brand name-Actos)   
eg-Rosiglitazone(brand name-Avandia)
activity-Help the body use insulin better
Pioglitazone
Pioglitazone is a drug used to treat  Type 2 diabetes. It lowers blood sugar by helping the body use insulin more efficiently. As an additional health benefit, pioglitzone may also improve HDL cholesterol and triglycerides. It can be used alone or in combination with other diabetes medicines such as sulfonylureas, metformin, or insulin. Taken alone, pioglitazone does not cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar levels).
 Other Names
Actos
Glustin
Uses
Diabetes is characterized by abnormally high concentrations of sugar in the blood. Pioglitazone is used to help lower both fasting and after-meal blood sugar levels in patients with type 2 diabetes (non-insulin dependent diabetes). It is used alone (monotherapy) or in combination with a sulfonylurea, metformin, or insulin when dietary and lifestyle modifications fail to control blood sugar adequately.
Pancreas in relation to other organs, and panceatic islet cells. Source: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
dosage
Pioglitazone is taken, in tablet form, once a day with or without food.
mechanism of action
Pioglitazone is a type of thiazolidinedione (TZD) that works by making tissues—especially muscle, fat, and liver—more responsive to insulin. The other marketed TZD, rosiglitazone (marketed as Avandia) has a similar mechanism of action. TZDs work in the nucleus of the cell by increasing the transcription of genes involved in glucose metabolism. As a result, pioglitazone reduces insulin resistance in the liver and peripheral tissues, increases glucose utilization, decreases production of glucose by the liver, and reduces the amount of glucose and insulin in the bloodstream.
Side Effects
Some common side effects associated with pioglitazone use are listed below:
    Cough or cold
    Headache
    Inflammation of the sinuses or throat
    Muscle pain
    Swelling or fluid retention
    Weight gain
    Decreased triglycerides and increased HDL (good cholesterol)
Benefits
Uncontrolled diabetes increases the risk of disease in almost every organ system, notably the kidneys and eyes. Normalization of blood sugar with pioglitazone reduces those risks. Apart from benefits of improved blood sugar control, pioglitazone increases good (HDL) cholesterol, lowers bad (LDL) cholesterol and triglycerides, and may have other beneficial effects in limiting the progression of arterial plaques. [1] It also reduces the progression of carotid artery wall thickening, which is a marker of cardiovascular risk. This benefit has been reported in patients with or without cardiovascular disease.

Rosiglitazone (roh-sig-LIH-tuh-zone)

The active ingredient in a drug that helps control the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood and is being studied in the prevention and treatment of some types of cancer. Rosiglitazone stops cells from growing and may prevent the growth of new blood vessels that tumors need to grow. It is a type of thiazolidinedione and a type of antiangiogenesis agent.