According to scientists at the University of Colorado Boulder, the next generation of weight-loss therapies may be shaped with the help of an unexpected source namely the python blood.
Researchers did name a compound found in pythons, which was published in Nature Metabolism on March 19, that seems to naturally inhibit appetite but maintain the muscle and general metabolic well-being. The discovery may open the path to some weight-loss medications that do not have some of the side effects experienced with the existing drugs.
The study, which was carried out in partnership with the researchers at Stanford and Baylor universities, focuses on the way in which the pythons cope with the extreme feeding patterns. These snakes are able to eat enormous meals and then spend months and even longer without eating it without ill-effect on their organs and even muscle tissue.
The senior author of the research, Leslie Leinwand, remarked that the work was a feeling of learning through the extreme of nature: the scientific perspective. Animals such as pythons, according to her, are capable of doing biological things that mammals cannot, and this provides hints on medical innovation.
Pythons are also characterized by great metabolic plasticity. Once they have eaten, their bodies change dramatically: the size of their heart may grow by approximately 25 percent and their metabolism may kick into overdrive to digest food effectively.
In a bid to determine the cause of these changes, scientists examined blood samples of ball pythons and Burmese pythons after feeding cycles. They discovered over 200 metabolites that were highly increased after a meal.
A single compound, para-tyramine-O-sulfate (pTOS) was outstanding. Its levels increased in almost 1000 times following feeding.
Subsequent experiments, which were implemented along with Baylor researchers revealed that, when pTOS was given to mice, it worked on the appetite-controlling centre in the brain- the hypothalamus, resulting in weight loss. Notably, this has been achieved without inciting gastrointestinal distress, muscle wastage or energy deficiency.
Gut bacteria in snakes synthesize the compound which is not inherent to mice. It is found in humans at low concentrations, especially after meals, but has remained largely undetected, since most metabolic research is done on rodents.
The results are published when the use of drugs affecting the GLP-1 hormone like Ozempic and Wegovy is popular in weight loss management, but may cause side effects and may be quit in the first year.
According to Leinwand, the new discovered compound might be another course. She indicated that even the available GLP-1 medicines were nature-inspired, namely, a hormone present in Gila monster venom.
Based on the finding, the research group has started a start-up, Arkana Therapeutics, to examine how python-related metabolic compounds may be converted into medication.
In addition to the loss of weight, the scientists are also exploring wider applications. Sarcopenia or age-related muscle loss is a significant unresolved medical issue and no current effective treatments exist. The fact that the python can maintain muscle mass, even with many days of starvation, could be of considerable importance.
The researchers intend to explore more into the pTOS mechanism in human beings and examine other metabolites that were found in the study some of which rose by up to 500 to 800 percent following a meal.
The present findings, he said, are but the tip of the iceberg as there is much more to discover about nature-inspired metabolic therapies.
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