As we all know a faster metabolism will help you lose weight. One of the risks that people that are over hve is an increased risk of getting diabetes.
A new study done by a pharmaceutical company seems to show that taking a certain drug for raising metabolism also reduces the risk of diabetes.
Investigational drugs that mimic the metabolic effects of calorie restriction have shown favorable results in animal models, according to researchers here and in France.
Action PointsOne, a synthetic drug, helped mice stay lean and healthy despite being fed a high-fat diet.
And in a separate study, injections of a human hormone known as apelin reduced blood glucose levels in obese as well as normal mice.
Both studies, published in the Nov. 5 issue of Cell Metabolism, suggested the two agents shared the same ultimate target, AMP-activated protein kinase or AMPK.
The synthetic drug, called SRT1720, shifted the animals’ metabolism into a mode normally seen only when they are calorie-deprived, reported Johan Auwerx, M.D., of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, and colleagues.
The agent directly activates the so-called SIRT1 pathway, which is believed to account for at least some of the beneficial effects of resveratrol, the health-giving component of red wine.
This pathway indirectly stimulates signalling mediated by the AMPK enzyme; however, SRT1720 does not directly act on AMPK. Earlier studies had shown that caloric restriction activates this pathway. The outward result is that the body begins to burn fat for energy and glucose metabolism becomes more sensitive to insulin.
In 10 weeks of treatment with SRT1720, mice given a high-fat diet gained little or no , showed no signs of insulin resistance, and their exercise endurance increased, the researchers found.
Compared with mice on the same diet but not receiving the drug, the treated mice had lower fat mass and smaller adipocyte cell size in both white and brown fat tissue.
Yoiu can read more at MedPage Today