A scientific team is exploring a new approach to treating obesity and type 2 diabetes, based on designing a smart drug that directly targets the cells involved, rather than affecting the whole body.
This work is led by Professor Timo D. Müller, a metabolic researcher at the Helmholtz Institute Munich, where he and his team developed a hybrid molecule that combines two pharmacological mechanisms into a single compound.
This innovation leverages the signaling pathways of the satiety and blood sugar-regulating hormones GLP-1 and GIP, two modern therapies known as incretins. These therapies have already helped improve weight and blood sugar control, but a significant challenge remains: the difficulty of adding other drugs that enhance cellular sensitivity to insulin without causing widespread side effects.
To solve this problem, researchers devised a "drug-within-a-drug" approach. They linked an incretin compound to another drug called lanifprenor, which activates intracellular receptors responsible for regulating lipid and sugar metabolism. The first part of the molecule acts as a "key" allowing it to enter target cells, while the second part begins its action only inside the cells, resulting in a more precise effec
Researchers liken this mechanism to a "Trojan horse" principle, where the first part is used to introduce the compound into the cell, and then the therapeutic effect is activated internally. The importance of this approach lies in the fact that it allows for lower doses of the second drug because it does not spread throughout the body, which may reduce the likelihood of side effects.
In experiments conducted on diet-induced obese mice, the results showed significant improvement. The mice consumed less food and lost more weight compared to those receiving conventional treatments, and their blood sugar levels improved. In some cases, the effect was even stronger than that of GLP-1 drugs alone.
The improvement wasn't limited to weight loss; there were also indications of increased insulin efficiency in the body, meaning better glucose transport from the blood to the tissues, as well as a decrease in glucose production in the liver. Furthermore, the trials did not show an increase in common side effects, such as gastrointestinal problems, compared to current treatments, and no concerning indicators like fluid retention or anemia were recorded within the study.
The data also suggests potential additional benefits for the heart and liver, but these findings are still preliminary. The researchers emphasize that the study was conducted in the pre-clinical phase, and it is not yet possible to confirm whether the same results will be achieved in humans, especially given the biological differences between humans and mice.
In this context, Müller explains that the next challenge is to develop this approach to make it suitable for human use and move it to the clinical trial stage, which requires cooperation with specialized industrial entities.
This innovation opens the door to a new generation of more precise treatments that target cells directly and achieve greater effectiveness with fClewer side effects.
