Even though weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy are medical breakthroughs, scientists are continuing to work on the next generation of obesity drugs. The latest discovery involves another hormone known as amylin, which scientists say could help revolutionize weight-loss drugs as we know them.
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Amylin functions similarly to semaglutides in the body.
In a paper published in the journal Science Signaling on Aug. 19, researchers at the University of Oklahoma announced that they had finally uncovered new information on how the hormone amylin was activated within the body, making it more accessible for the next generation of pharmaceutical development for weight management medications.
Typically, the pancreas produces and secretes amylin alongside insulin whenever a person eats, according to a press release. The hormone not only helps regulate blood sugar levels, but it also helps control appetite and feelings of hunger.
Overall, it’s similar to the semaglutide used by GLP-1-style medications such as Wegovy and Ozempic, which interact with the same family of receptors in the brain.
“There has been a lot of interest in the pharmaceutical industry for developing new obesity drugs,” Sandra Gostynska, the paper’s lead author and doctoral student at the University of Oklahoma, said in a statement. “What we have done is given the field new tools for understanding how a drug can affect amylin receptors.”
The new research produced significant results for weight loss.
Scientists took away at least two significant findings from the research paper. The first pertains to our understanding of the three amylin receptors, which appear similar but are actually composed of slightly different subcomponents that make them more complicated.
The team likens this to a group of people who may be wearing an identical outfit, but each has unique accessories that differentiate them from the others. They explained that this breakthrough will allow them to focus on the required elements (which in this case is controlling appetite) to help minimize side effects of future medications while maximizing effectiveness.
The second major takeaway also pertained to the receptors’ subunits, but centered on medications’ future potential to “pull the subunits together or push them apart.” The researchers said this newfound understanding could help in the engineering of new drugs to produce different results.
“This paper shows the new biochemical and pharmacological methods we developed that will enable the field, for the first time, to understand exactly what drugs in development do at each of the three amylin receptors,” Augen Pioszak, PhD, the paper’s senior author and an associate professor of biochemistry and physiology at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, said in the press release.
“Amylin receptors are very complicated, and each has very different and unique properties. What we have discovered has eluded researchers for many years, and we believe our findings will advance drug development,” Pioszak added.
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Companies are already trying to develop amylin-based drugs.
The latest findings could significantly speed the development of a new style of drugs that’s already underway. Last September, pharmaceutical company and Ozempic developer Novo Nordisk announced that it had seen success in a Phase I trial of a new obesity pill targeting amylin known as amycretin, STAT reported.
Results found that patients taking a 50mg daily dose of the medication saw a 10.4 percent weight loss over the roughly three-month trial period. Those taking a double dose saw even more pounds shed with 13.1 percent weight loss, compared to a 1.1 percent weight loss for participants taking a placebo pill.
The scientists involved in the latest research paper say their findings could help others better understand how to progress with their next generation of medications, shedding much-needed light on a previously unknown topic.
“We believe our findings will further the study of drugs because what pharmaceutical and biotech companies want to know is what their drug does at each amylin receptor,” Pioszak said in the press release. “Now we have a method of answering those questions that were previously unanswerable.”
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