Could a new drug that makes fat cells self-destruct be the next big GLP-1?
uncertain
cells → make → ?
CBL-514 targets fat cells, and a new study shows that it was effective in slimming down participants’ waistlines.
asserted
it → target → waistlines
Early data suggests it’s effective at keeping it off, too.
uncertain
it → suggest → it
While GLP-1s mostly decrease fat, they also shed up to 25% vital lean mass.
asserted
they → decrease → mass
And after stopping GLP-1s, people often regain two thirds of the weight they lost within a year.
asserted
they → stop → year
“We expect that patients will be pleased by the cosmetic effects, such as the flatter stomach that can come with subcutaneous fat loss,” one author said.
“
asserted
author → expect → loss
But it is the reduction in body weight, loss of visceral fat and the improvements in blood pressure, cholesterol and the like that should be associated with this that will be important for health.”
asserted
that → associate → health
Some experts say CBL-514 could turn out to be “a more fundamental obesity therapy” than GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic.
uncertain
CBL-514 → say → Ozempic
But rather than slowing digestion and decreasing our appetite like GLP-1s do, the new drug works more locally.
asserted
drug → slow → appetite
It blocks a critical way for fat cells to survive, causing them to die off at the injection site — the belly.
asserted
them → block → belly
New data from phase 2 clinical trials shows that the drug reduces subcutaneous fat (fat right below the skin) and visceral fat (fat deep inside the body that wraps around the organs).
asserted
that → show → organs
Common surgeries that target subcutaneous fat like liposuction and abdominoplasty (aka a “tummy tuck”) are far more invasive, CBL-514 researchers say.
asserted
researchers → target → liposuction
These surgeries also introduce risks far worse than an uneven cosmetic result, including infection, blood vessel blockages, or embolisms, and even an internal organ being punctured.
asserted
surgeries → introduce → infection
CBL-514 works on both kinds of fat without the invasive surgery.
asserted
CBL-514 → work → surgery
“This is a highly innovative approach to obesity pharmacotherapy that has produced some remarkable results in early human trials,” said Dr W. Timothy Garvey, an advisor to Caliway, the drugmaker behind CBL-514, and a professor at University of Alabama at Birmingham.
asserted
Garvey → produce → Birmingham
What the latest data shows
asserted
shows → show → What
In the latest trials, participants got a shot of CBL-514 every three weeks.
asserted
participants → get → CBL-514
The number of shots they got depended on the thickness of their belly fat, which decreased as the drug’s effects took hold.
asserted
effects → get → hold
After just four weeks, average visceral abdominal fat already decreased by 12%.
asserted
fat → decrease → %
Researchers believe that once those fat cells are killed off, the ability for them to grow back is limited, making it difficult to regain the weight.
asserted
it → believe → weight
Right now, CBL-514’s lasting effects after medication is stopped have only been shown in rats, and researchers are looking into whether the effect can be replicated in humans.
asserted
effect → last → humans
Researchers are also exploring whether CBL-514 could work with a GLP-1 drug to help a patient stop taking it while reducing the risk of weight regain.
uncertain
patient → explore → regain
Other than “mostly mild-to-moderate and transient” injection-site reactions, such as pain, swelling and redness, CBL-514 was generally well tolerated, researchers said.
asserted
researchers → tolerate → pain
No serious adverse events were reported.
asserted
events → report → ?
The drug is now entering phase 3 drug trials, the final stage before FDA approval.
asserted
drug → enter → approval
The Aporia
