Scientists have developed a new drug that attacks the body's excess fat, and a new study reports that it helped a small group of obese monkeys losing weight. Experts say drug fat-attack mechanism is an interesting approach to lose weight, but questions remain about the efficacy and safety of the drug in humans.
Diet medication before trying to help the body lose fat by increasing metabolism or by controlling hunger pangs which make people want to eat more. But researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston designed a new drug Adipotide to attack the fat itself by destroying the blood supply that makes life.
"Without a blood supply, withers away fats and remetabolized by heart," says Dr. Wadih Arap, one of the authors of the study.
The researchers tested the drug in a small group of obese monkeys. After a four-week, monkey lost an average of 11 percent of their weight. The drug also lowered the animal's Body Mass Index (BMI) and waist circumference are pruned. Slender monkey who took the drug did not lose weight, suggesting that drugs selectively targeted fat in fat monkey.
"This is an exciting new concept in our efforts to control obesity," said Dr. Lou Aronne, Director of the comprehensive weight control program at Weill Cornell Medical College. "But we need to study humans to effectiveness and more importantly, safety."