New Drug May Help Lose Weight, Reduce Fat By Mimicking Exercise

Engaging in exercise makes our bodies healthier and helps lower the risk of dying early from any causes.

Scientists have been studying medicines that can mimic the effects of exercise and might help treat various illnesses, including obesity and a group of conditions called metabolic syndrome.

In new research, published in the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, researchers demonstrated how a substance called SLU-PP-332 acts like a switch that turns on certain beneficial processes in the body, much like what happens when we exercise.

SLU-PP-332 is an estrogen receptor-related (ERR) agonist.

An ERR is a type of receptor that closely resembles receptors that bind estrogen but has no known ligand (binding partner) in the body. Think of it as a special kind of lock.

Senior author Thomas P. Burris, Ph.D., from the University of Florida Genetics Institute, Department of Pharmacodynamics College of Pharmacy, explained the key findings to Medical News Today:

“ERR agonists represent a potential new class of drugs that could be used to treat metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and obesity, as well as muscle weakness in the elderly.”

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