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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A new drug may help prevent weight gain and insulin resistance.
French researchers say the experimental drug, SRT1720, can essentially trick the body into believing food is scarce even when it is not. It acts through the protein SIRT1, which enhances running endurance in exercised mice and protects them from weight gain and insulin resistance even when they eat a high-fat diet. The drug shifts the metabolism to a fat-burning mode that normally takes over only when energy levels are low.
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The study finds giving mice a low dose of SRT1720 for 10 weeks partially protected them from gaining weight on a high-fat diet. Higher doses completely prevented weight gain. SRT1720 improved blood sugar tolerance and insulin sensitivity and gave the mice greater athletic ability.
Results also show the SIRT1 activator mimics a low-calorie diet and favors the use of fat stores. It induces chronic metabolic adaptations that involve the indirect activation of AMPK -- an enzyme that regulates skeletal muscle glucose and the metabolism of fatty acids.
The studys findings boost the notion that SIRT1 may be a useful target in the fight against metabolic disorders, including obesity and type 2 diabetes.
The authors say SRT1720 does have some limitations. The results they saw came only at fairly high doses. They did not find any significant side effects, but say more studies are needed to adequately address that question.
SOURCE: Cell Metabolism, 2008
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