Ozempic has been hailed as a promising anti-diabetic drug, but its potential appears to extend far beyond the treatment of Type 2 diabetes.
Canadian endocrinologist Daniel J. Drucker — a diabetes pioneer whose work paved the way for Ozempic — shares what’s next for this class of anti-obesity drugs, which take like the GLP-1 hormone to make people feel full and lose weight. These drugs have shown promise in reducing heart and kidney disease.
“The first chapter of the GLP-1 innovation focused on [blood sugar] control, and then, weight loss,” Drucker wrote in the journal Science on Friday. "The next wave appears to be improving health outcomes in people with a variety of chronic conditions."
calms inflammation
Chronic inflammation – when your immune system is activated long after an injury or threat of disease has passed – is linked to diabetes, heart disease and cancer, among other serious conditions.
Drucker said that GLP-1 drugs indirectly reduce inflammation through weight loss, as high sugar and excess fat can cause inflammation.
The drug also activates T cells, an important part of the immune system, independent of weight loss.
Drucker’s team recently discovered an inflammatory network that controls inflammation throughout the body.
"We know from animal studies and human studies that GLP-1 seems to reduce inflammation almost everywhere," Drucker told Nature in January.
Brain disease is a target
Neuroinflammation – inflammation of nerve cells – is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, which are brain diseases characterized by cognitive decline.
About 5.8 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
Semaglutide – the active ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic – has been tested to see if it has a positive effect on early Alzheimer’s disease. The interim results may come next year.
As for Parkinson’s disease, Drucker reports that there is a large phase 3 trial of the GLP-1 drug exenatide.
"Several clinical trials have examined the therapeutic potential of exenatide in people with Parkinson’s disease, with mixed results," Drucker wrote in Science.
About one million Americans have Parkinson’s disease — patients may experience slow, shaky, stiff movements and difficulty walking.
Improves mental health
Drucker said more trials are also in the works to determine whether GLP-1 drugs can reduce addiction-related behaviors.
He noted that semaglutide was associated with a lower risk of suicidal thoughts than other weight loss drugs.
He writes that anecdotal reports of Ozempic users drinking small amounts of alcohol are common, but the test results are inconclusive.
The drug’s effects on depression and anxiety are also being studied.
Drucker predicts that the next decade of GLP-1 research "may bring even more progress."
"Dozens of new molecules are being tested in the clinic, and some may target new mechanisms and be more beneficial in many diseases than are more effective. [blood sugar] control and discount," he wrote.
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