soowhatdou
Thu, Sep-27-07, 06:15
Sooo, if craving fatty food is your problem, this new
formulation* of an old histamin1 & 2 blockers might be of
help.
Arbor
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-09/afot-ndm092607-
.php New drug makes weight loss safer
Dr. Nir Barak of TAU University has created a new diet drug
with fewer side effects
TEL AVIV - More than 60 percent of American women are
overweight, with nearly a third falling into the category of
obese and at greater risk of cancer, heart disease and
diabetes. Until now, there has been no safe, long-term medical
remedy that tackles unwanted weight gain.
Ds. Nir Barak of Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of
Medicine has developed what could be a new weight-loss
wonder drug. In conjunction with the drug company Obecure,
Dr. Barak developed a new formulation called HistaleanTM,
based on betahistine, an approved drug marketed worldwide
for the treatment of vertigo. Betahistine has been
available to health authorities for over 30 years.
Betahistine is believed to block receptors in the brain - the
H1 and H3 receptors - which are connected to one's sense of
fullness and desire to eat fatty foods. It has an excellent
safety profile and has been used for treatment by more than
100 million patients suffering from vertigo and dizziness in
Canada and Europe.
The repurposed pill, Histalean, has been found to quell the
desire to consume fatty foods, and the effects have been most
pronounced in women.
According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control, about 32% of
adult American women under 54 (about 25 million women) suffer
from obesity. "Our new results suggest a strong
gender-and-age-effect and support the potential of the drug as
a breakthrough anti-obesity agent in women 50 years old or
less," confirmed Dr. Yaffa Beck, Obecure's CEO.
According to some estimates, obesity results in thousands of
deaths a year and accounts for $117 billion in U.S. health
care expenses annually. Clearly, a breakthrough in this area
will not only make women look and feel better, but it could
save their lives as well.
A recent Phase II clinical trial of the new drug in the U.S.
suggests that women under the age of 50 who took Histalean for
12 weeks lost 7 times the weight of those taking a placebo.
What's most important to the researchers involved is that none
of the 281 patients, males and females aged 18-65, complained
of any serious side effects.
The trial, completed this August, was supervised by U.S.
weight-loss guru Dr. Robert Kushner. The women who took the
pill reported, "It wasn't hard." "I wasn't thinking about
food." "I was content."
Dt. Barak explains why this is good news, "All the drugs in
the diet pill market today have serious side effects. They
may help a woman lose weight, but with that weight loss
comes all sorts of bad things like depression and even
suicide. Safety issues are a real concern for the FDA. But
because this new drug has already been proven safe for
other indications, we think Histalean has real blockbuster
potential."
The recent results were based on a double-blind,
placebo-controlled study on people with a Body Mass Index
ranging from 30 to 40. (A BMI of 30 and above indicate
obesity.) The study was conducted at 19 investigation sites
across the U.S. over a 12 week treatment period. The subgroup
of high-dose Histalean-treated women lost an average of
2.91% of their weight versus placebo group which lost
only 0.4 %.
Du. Barak's drug is also expected to compete for the $28
billion market of cholesterol-reducing drugs such as
Lipitor. It could also be used in parallel with
anti-psychotic drugs, which have unwanted side effects of
extreme weight gain among mental health patients.
###
American Friends of Tel Aviv University supports Israel's
largest and most comprehensive center of higher education. It
is ranked among the world's top 100 universities in science,
biomedical studies, and social science, and rated one of the
world's top 200 universities overall. Internationally
recognized for the scope and groundbreaking nature of its
research programs, Tel Aviv University consistently produces
work with profound implications for the future.
formulation* of an old histamin1 & 2 blockers might be of
help.
Arbor
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-09/afot-ndm092607-
.php New drug makes weight loss safer
Dr. Nir Barak of TAU University has created a new diet drug
with fewer side effects
TEL AVIV - More than 60 percent of American women are
overweight, with nearly a third falling into the category of
obese and at greater risk of cancer, heart disease and
diabetes. Until now, there has been no safe, long-term medical
remedy that tackles unwanted weight gain.
Ds. Nir Barak of Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of
Medicine has developed what could be a new weight-loss
wonder drug. In conjunction with the drug company Obecure,
Dr. Barak developed a new formulation called HistaleanTM,
based on betahistine, an approved drug marketed worldwide
for the treatment of vertigo. Betahistine has been
available to health authorities for over 30 years.
Betahistine is believed to block receptors in the brain - the
H1 and H3 receptors - which are connected to one's sense of
fullness and desire to eat fatty foods. It has an excellent
safety profile and has been used for treatment by more than
100 million patients suffering from vertigo and dizziness in
Canada and Europe.
The repurposed pill, Histalean, has been found to quell the
desire to consume fatty foods, and the effects have been most
pronounced in women.
According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control, about 32% of
adult American women under 54 (about 25 million women) suffer
from obesity. "Our new results suggest a strong
gender-and-age-effect and support the potential of the drug as
a breakthrough anti-obesity agent in women 50 years old or
less," confirmed Dr. Yaffa Beck, Obecure's CEO.
According to some estimates, obesity results in thousands of
deaths a year and accounts for $117 billion in U.S. health
care expenses annually. Clearly, a breakthrough in this area
will not only make women look and feel better, but it could
save their lives as well.
A recent Phase II clinical trial of the new drug in the U.S.
suggests that women under the age of 50 who took Histalean for
12 weeks lost 7 times the weight of those taking a placebo.
What's most important to the researchers involved is that none
of the 281 patients, males and females aged 18-65, complained
of any serious side effects.
The trial, completed this August, was supervised by U.S.
weight-loss guru Dr. Robert Kushner. The women who took the
pill reported, "It wasn't hard." "I wasn't thinking about
food." "I was content."
Dt. Barak explains why this is good news, "All the drugs in
the diet pill market today have serious side effects. They
may help a woman lose weight, but with that weight loss
comes all sorts of bad things like depression and even
suicide. Safety issues are a real concern for the FDA. But
because this new drug has already been proven safe for
other indications, we think Histalean has real blockbuster
potential."
The recent results were based on a double-blind,
placebo-controlled study on people with a Body Mass Index
ranging from 30 to 40. (A BMI of 30 and above indicate
obesity.) The study was conducted at 19 investigation sites
across the U.S. over a 12 week treatment period. The subgroup
of high-dose Histalean-treated women lost an average of
2.91% of their weight versus placebo group which lost
only 0.4 %.
Du. Barak's drug is also expected to compete for the $28
billion market of cholesterol-reducing drugs such as
Lipitor. It could also be used in parallel with
anti-psychotic drugs, which have unwanted side effects of
extreme weight gain among mental health patients.
###
American Friends of Tel Aviv University supports Israel's
largest and most comprehensive center of higher education. It
is ranked among the world's top 100 universities in science,
biomedical studies, and social science, and rated one of the
world's top 200 universities overall. Internationally
recognized for the scope and groundbreaking nature of its
research programs, Tel Aviv University consistently produces
work with profound implications for the future.