A newly developed pill could offer a new approach to treating type 2 diabetes and obesity. Early research suggests it may lower blood sugar levels and increase fat burning without causing appetite loss or muscle loss, a common concern with some current weight loss drugs.
The survey results were published in a magazine cellby researchers at Karolinska Institutet and Stockholm University.
A different approach than GLP-1 drugs
Unlike popular GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic, which is administered by injection and works by affecting appetite signals between the gut and the brain, the new treatment takes a completely different path.
Rather than targeting hunger, this experimental drug activates metabolism within skeletal muscle. The researchers say this approach improved blood sugar regulation and body composition in animal studies and avoided some of the side effects often associated with GLP-1 therapy, including appetite suppression, muscle loss, and digestive problems.
It is treated with tablets rather than injections.
Early human clinical trials show promising results
Researchers also conducted an initial Phase I clinical trial involving 48 healthy volunteers and 25 patients with type 2 diabetes. According to the study, participants tolerated the treatment well.
“Our findings point to a future in which we can improve metabolic health without losing muscle mass. Muscle is important in both type 2 diabetes and obesity, and muscle mass is also directly correlated with life expectancy,” says one of the researchers involved in the study, Professor Torre Bengtsson from the Department of Molecular Biosciences at the Wenner-Gren Institute at Stockholm University.
Designed to boost muscle metabolism
The drug is built around lab-developed molecules known as beta2 agonists. The researchers designed the compound to activate key signaling pathways in a new way that benefits muscle tissue without overstimulating the heart, a challenge that has historically limited the use of beta2 agonists.
“This drug represents a completely new type of treatment and could be very important for patients with type 2 diabetes and obesity. Our substance appears to promote healthy weight loss, and patients do not need injections,” says Shane C. Wright, assistant professor at Karolinska Institutet’s Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, one of the researchers involved in the study.
Potential to work alone or in combination with existing drugs
Because this new treatment works differently than GLP-1 drugs, researchers believe it could be useful on its own or in combination with existing treatments.
“This makes it valuable both as a stand-alone treatment and in combination with GLP-1 drugs,” says Shane C. Wright.
The next step will be a large-scale Phase II clinical trial led by Atrogi AB, which is developing the drug. The researchers hope to determine whether the benefits observed in preclinical studies can be replicated in people with type 2 diabetes or obesity.
International cooperation and funding
The study involved scientists from Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm University, Uppsala University, University of Copenhagen, Monash University and the University of Queensland.
Funding was provided by several organizations, including the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish Medical Research Association, and the Novo Nordisk Foundation.
Several authors of this study are employed by or own shares in Atrogi AB, which funded the clinical trial. Tore Bengtsson is the founder and chief scientific officer of Atrogi AB, and together with co-authors has applied for patents related to the compounds investigated in the study. Additional corporate affiliations and potential conflicts of interest are detailed in the published study.
