Tag: weight loss drugs

Categories : Metabolic DisordersTags :

A Promising New Obesity and Diabetes Treatment Helps Burn Fat While Keeping Muscle

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Andres Ayrton on Pexels

Over the past five years, medications called GLP-1s have revolutionised the treatment of metabolic disorders like obesity, diabetes and fatty liver diseases. These drugs are highly effective at helping people lose weight and manage their blood sugar levels.

However, they do come with some risks. Some people taking GLP-1s experience nausea and other gastrointestinal side effects that can be difficult to manage. And, by suppressing appetite and reducing food intake, they have the potential to cause nutritional deficiencies and muscle loss, which can lead to frailty and other problems long term. 

At UC Berkeley, researchers have found a new potential treatment for obesity and diabetes that works by increasing energy expenditure – boosting the body’s metabolic rate – rather than limiting energy intake. 

In a study published online in the journal Science Advances, the researchers show that a molecular compound called 5-tetradecyloxy-2-furoic acid (TOFA) is able to block the production of lipids like cholesterol and triglycerides while simultaneously turning up genes that help cells burn fat and generate energy.

In experiments in mice, the researchers found that TOFA is effective at improving insulin sensitivity and glucose control, lowering triglycerides and improving features of fatty liver disease. When obese mice took the compound, they lost weight from fat but experienced no significant loss of lean muscle mass.

“Body weight responds to two levers: taking in fewer calories, or spending more energy,” said Anders Näär, a professor of metabolic biology and nutrition at UC Berkeley and senior author of the study. “GLP-1s work almost entirely on the first, so we went after the second.”

TOFA was first discovered in the 1970s and is known for being part of a class of compounds called ACC inhibitors, which help block the production of lipids in the body. Though several ACC inhibitors reached mid-stage clinical testing, none has been approved for metabolic disease. This is largely because many of these compounds can also raise triglycerides, posing a significant risk to heart health. 

In the new study, the researchers found that TOFA doesn’t just act as an ACC inhibitor, but also activates PPARα and PPARδ, cellular receptors which turn on genes that let cells take up fat and burn it for energy. In mice, this caused the cells to burn up to 18% more energy with no change in physical activity or increase in body temperature. Perhaps because of this dual mechanism, TOFA also did not raise triglycerides like other ACC inhibitors. 

“TOFA appears to engage a coordinated metabolic response,” said study first author Justin Y. Lee, a postdoctoral student at UCSF who conducted the research as a Ph.D. student at Berkeley. “It is not simply blocking lipid synthesis. It is also activating energy expenditure pathways that may help the body handle excess lipid and glucose more effectively.”

When the researchers tried giving mice two separate compounds – one to block lipid production and a second to boost energy expenditure – they found that the combination was not as effective at improving overall metabolic health as TOFA alone. 

The researchers also explored whether TOFA could be used together with GLP-1 medications like semaglutide, which is sold under the brand names Ozempic or Wegovy, and tirzepatide, which is sold as Mounjaro and Zepbound. In mice, they found that combining TOFA with these GLP-1 drugs led to greater improvements in body weight, glucose control, insulin levels and triglycerides than either treatment alone. 

“In our combination experiments, TOFA worked additively or synergistically with the GLP-1 appetite suppressing drugs, so we view it as complementary rather than as a replacement,” Näär said. 

The researchers caution that TOFA has only been studied in animals, and its safety and efficacy in humans has yet to be tested. With support from Berkeley’s life sciences entrepreneurship ecosystem, including Nucleate and Berkeley SkyDeck, they have founded a new company ReRx Therapeutics to help carry this work to patients. 

Source: UC Berkeley

Categories : Metabolic DisordersTags :

South Africa’s Weight-Management Market Needs Stronger Safeguards for Women

On By ModernMedia

By Dr Gerhard Vosloo, Founder and Head Consulting Practitioner at Dr GL Vosloo Medical Practice, managed by BioWell

Prescription-based weight management treatment has surged into the mainstream, giving more people with genuine clinical needs access to potentially life-changing care. However, the market’s growth has not been matched by consistently high standards of care. This Women’s Month, we must confront the fact that many women remain particularly vulnerable to inadequate clinical oversight, inappropriate prescribing practices, and black-market products that operate outside established medical safeguards.

Nearly seven in ten adult South African women are obese, compared to four in ten men. Women therefore account for a significant share of the weight-management market and, as a result, may face greater exposure to irresponsible medical practices and unregulated black-market options, where proper clinical support and control are virtually non-existent.

At Dr GL Vosloo Medical Practice, managed by BioWell, women make up the majority of patients seeking a holistic weight-loss and metabolic management programme, which may include prescription treatment where clinically justified. Concerningly, some patients arriving from other programmes report excessively high dosages of treatments, with scarce oversight or guidance. Others have used black-market products and later sought professional medical help after struggling to manage their treatment safely and effectively.

These experiences demonstrate exactly why prescription treatment should form part of a broader, medically-supervised programme rather than a medication-only approach. As more women seek treatment, the industry has a duty to help them understand what good clinical care and appropriate dosing practices involve, as well as how to distinguish a medically grounded programme from those built primarily around access to medication.

Not all weight-management programmes are created equal. Patients should look for a few key indicators that suggest a provider is delivering safe, responsible care:

  1. Screening should begin before the consultation

Before the first appointment is even scheduled, a reputable practice or physician should gather sufficient information to understand a patient’s medical history, current health status, and potential risk factors. For example, intake forms may ask about previous weight-loss treatments, allergies, pregnancy or breastfeeding status, eating habits, goals, and other information that may help the practitioner identify contraindications early.

Patients should expect this information to be reviewed before they proceed. Any omissions or concerns should be raised, while patients with possible contraindications, urgent medical issues, or conditions outside the programme’s scope should be informed and referred where necessary.

  1. The consultation should establish clinical need and risk

Patients should expect a thorough consultation that explores their concerns, goals, medical and treatment history, symptoms, and relevant lifestyle or health factors. It should also give the doctor an opportunity to clarify uncertainties, identify undisclosed contraindications, and assess appetite, eating behaviour, level of activity, sleep quality, and mental health.

For women, this may include menstrual health, contraceptive use, pregnancy plans, breastfeeding, menopause, polycystic ovary syndrome, hormone treatment, and previous gestational diabetes.

A medical assessment should establish whether prescription treatment is clinically appropriate, rather than being prescribed simply because a patient wants to lose weight. Relevant considerations may include body measurements, blood pressure, glucose, cholesterol, organ and thyroid function, vitamin and hormone levels, and pregnancy screening where relevant.

  1. Treatment decisions should be fully explained before consent

Doctors should provide a clear explanation of whether prescription therapy is appropriate, whether it should be delayed or avoided, or whether another treatment approach may be more suitable. Prescription-based medication should not be framed as the primary intervention, although it may form part of a broader programme covering nutrition, exercise, behaviour, supplementation, metabolic support, clinical monitoring, and guidance on how these elements work together.

Before written consent is given, patients should be informed about the expected benefits, potential side effects, serious risks, contraindications, alternatives, monitoring requirements, and circumstances under which treatment may be stopped. Women should also be informed about how pregnancy plans, breastfeeding, hormonal treatment, or changing health circumstances may affect whether treatment can begin or continue.

  1. Prescriptions should be individualised and closely monitored

Patients should be cautious of one-size-fits-all prescribing practices. Treatment should reflect the individual’s clinical needs and risk profile, using a conservative approach rather than a standard dose or automatic escalation schedule.

Ongoing follow-up is equally important. Regular check-ins should track progress, side effects, relevant eating and lifestyle factors, and any changes in health or medication use, with treatment adjusted accordingly. For women, this continuity is particularly important because hormonal, reproductive, and life-stage circumstances may change during treatment and affect how care is managed.

Women should not have to navigate a fast-moving treatment market through trial and error. By understanding the characteristics of safe, medically supervised care, patients are better equipped to make informed choices. Ultimately, however, the responsibility rests with practitioners and clinics to make ethical, medically-grounded care easy to recognise from the outset. Public trust in this treatment category will depend on how consistently the industry meets that standard.