A new weight-loss drug shows promise in early trials.
Research from the Helmholtz Institute for Diabetes and Obesity in Munich, Germany, published in the journal Nature, tested an experimental obesity and diabetes drug called GLP-1-GIP-Lani.
The drug combines GLP-1 and GIP (two natural hormones that help regulate appetite and blood sugar, similar to popular weight-loss drugs like Ozempic) with PPAR activity to improve insulin sensitivity, inflammation, fat metabolism and liver health.
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The research team, led by Professor Timo D. Muller of Hermolz University in Munich, calls the drug a quintuple agonist because it targets five receptor systems.
In a press release, Muller described the drug as a “Trojan horse”: The incretin component, a hormone that helps regulate blood sugar and appetite, allows it to enter target cells, and once inside, the PPAR “cargo” activates, helping the body better use insulin, process fat and reduce inflammation.
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Researchers hope the “Trojan horse” effect will lead to lower doses and fewer side effects.
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This allows for lower doses of the drug, which can reduce side effects.
“One major advantage is volume,” Mueller said. “Because the second component is not administered alone and systemically, but ‘moves along’ with the incretin moiety, it can be used at doses that are orders of magnitude lower.”
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The study tested the drug combination in mouse models, including mice with diabetes-induced obesity, insulin resistance and genetic obesity.
In these mice, the compound was found to reduce body weight, food intake, fat mass, blood sugar and insulin-related problems more than GLP-1 and GIP alone. It is also superior to semaglutide.
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The researchers reported that typical gastrointestinal side effects were similar to those seen with existing therapies.
“We see a principle with strong implications in animal models—the task now is to optimize the approach in humans and advance it into the clinic,” Muller said in a press release.
Preclinical studies were conducted in mouse models and cannot yet be applied to humans.
The drug is designed to target obesity and insulin resistance “at multiple key sites simultaneously, including the brain, pancreas and metabolic tissue,” said Dr. Peter Balazs, a hormone and weight loss expert who practices in New York and New Jersey.
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“It’s a novel mechanism because it doesn’t just rely on higher doses of existing drugs,” he said in a Fox News Digital interview.
“Current GLP-1 drugs are highly potent appetite suppressants, and this quintuple agonist appears to act as both an ‘appetite brake’ and a metabolic engine,” he added.
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Experts confirmed that traditional GLP-1 mainly reduces appetite, slows gastric emptying and increases insulin secretion, while this quintuple agonist “appears to have all of the above effects” while also “directly improving insulin sensitivity in liver and muscle, reducing inflammation in adipose tissue and remodeling lipid metabolism.”
One expert said that while traditional GLP-1 mainly reduces appetite, slows gastric emptying and increases insulin secretion, this pentagram “appears to do all of the above.”
“Through a combination of caloric restriction, enhanced fat oxidation and potentially increased central energy expenditure, the result may be greater weight loss,” Balazs said.
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While the drug offers “promising directions for the future,” Balazs noted that the study was only conducted on a mouse model and there is no safety or efficacy data in humans, meaning the drug cannot yet be recommended for clinical use.
“Moreover, it was conducted over a relatively short period of time, so we cannot draw conclusions about long-term effects,” he added.
Original source of the article: Experimental obesity drug outperforms traditional weight loss treatments in early study