By Nancy Lapid, Health Science Editor |
Hello Health Rounds readers! New details on the molecular structure of a protein in fat cells could one day lead to treatments that switch these cells from storing fat around your midsection to burning calories instead. We also highlight a study that could serve as a cautionary tale for the importance of diversity in clinical trials. It found a therapy for advanced prostate cancer that's not helpful in white men significantly improves survival in Black men. And we report on a tiny study with potentially big implications for ALS patients. Watch for a special edition of Health Rounds on Monday reporting from the year's biggest cancer conference. In breaking news, see these stories from our Reuters journalists: Pfizer's experimental antibiotic combo treats some superbug infections; Medicare will cover new Alzheimer's drugs, if patients enroll in a registry; U.S. Justice Department investigates California refinery over emission of powdery substance; J&J faces new talc cancer trial; and U.S. FDA approves Pfizer's RSV vaccine. Recent industry news stories say Roche wants to sell or close a California plant; FDA has flagged Coherus BioSciences partner; AstraZeneca is giving up on Crohn's disease drug; Abbott says former scientist stole trade-secrets; Coherus will launch Humira biosimilar at 85% discount; Walmart raises wages for pharmacists, opticians; Johnson Matthey to sell medical device unit; and Illumina CEO survived Icahn's challenge. . |
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Researchers hope someday to be able to tell fat cells to burn off excess calories as heat, instead of storing them and causing people to become overweight or obese. REUTERS/Finbarr O'Reilly. |
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Understanding of fat cells could lead to calorie-burning treatments |
Researchers are a step closer to figuring out how to instruct fat cells to burn off excess calories as heat, instead of storing them and causing people to become overweight or obese, according to a report published on Thursday in Science Advances. Humans have two kinds of fat: white fat, which stores energy, and brown fat, which breaks down blood sugar and fat molecules to create heat and help maintain body temperature. The protein in brown fat that allows it to burn off calories is called 'uncoupling protein 1' (UCP1), and researchers say they have now identified its molecular structure. "Even with more brown fat, UCP1 must still be 'switched on' to gain full benefit. And research has been hampered by a lack of details on the molecular make up of UCP1," explained study coauthor Dr. Paul Crichton, from the University of East Anglia's Norwich Medical School, in a statement. "Despite more than 40 years of research, we did not know what UCP1 looks like to understand how it works – until now." The new molecular details will aid development of drugs that can that activate UCP1 artificially to burn off excess calories, and that could one day help combat obesity and related diseases, such as diabetes, the researchers said. "There has been a lot of interest in how to increase brown fat and activate UCP1 therapeutically, as a potential way to treat obesity," Crichton said. Read about current obesity treatments on Reuters.com |
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Essential Reading on Reuters.com |
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Prostate cancer drug combo works better for Black patients |
A combination of drugs for treating advanced prostate cancer that does not significantly improve survival in white men provides much greater benefit to Black men, according to study results to be presented at the upcoming American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago. Two years after starting treatment with the two hormonal therapies from Johnson & Johnson - Zytiga (abiraterone acetate) and Erleada (apalutamide) - 86% of Black study participants were still alive, compared to 66% of the white participants. "This research shows the importance of diversity in clinical trials," study leader Dr. Daniel George of Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina said in a statement. "You can't assume that a lack of benefit in white patients applies to Blacks," he added. Nearly half of the 93 men with metastatic prostate cancer who participated in the trial were Black. All received the two J&J therapies for two years or until their disease began to worsen. They received care at the same institutions from the same care teams. In addition to the survival benefit, the treatment has kept the cancer under control for longer periods in Black men. Half of them have had stable disease for more than 30 months, compared with disease progression in half of white men within 15 months. The study is ongoing. The findings highlight "the need to design studies that include more Black participants, because there can be significant differences in the outcomes," George said. |
Parkinson's drug shows promise for ALS in small study |
A drug used to treat Parkinson's disease may delay the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease, preliminary data from a small trial suggest. ALS, a fatal nerve disease in which people gradually lose control of their muscles, is incurable, with current treatments largely limited to reducing symptoms and supportive care. In a randomized trial involving just 20 patients, ropinirole, sold as ReQuip by GlaxoSmithKline, was safe for ALS patients and prevented their disease from worsening for slightly more than half a year, on average, compared to a placebo, according to a report published on Thursday in Cell Stem Cell. Patients who received ropinirole were able to be more physically active than those in the placebo group. They also showed slower rates of decline in mobility, muscle strength, and lung function, the researchers reported. The researchers also found that nerve cells known as motor neurons from ALS patients showed distinct differences in structure, gene expression, and metabolism compared to motor neurons from healthy individuals. The GSK treatment reduced these differences, they said. Study leader Hideyuki Okano of the Keio University School of Medicine in Tokyo said a much larger trial is being planned to confirm the drug's effectiveness. Read more about ALS on Reuters.com - Amylyx says European panel unlikely to endorse ALS drug
- U.S. FDA gives conditional approval to Biogen's gene therapy for ALS.
This newsletter was edited by Bill Berkrot. |
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