In a ground-breaking study, just published in leading international journal Nature Metabolism , scientists from Trinity College Dublin and Princeton and Harvard Medical School share newly uncovered secrets to natural appetite control, which offers promise in the battle against obesity and type-2 diabetes.
The new research shows the diabetes drug Metformin and solid foods elevate a hunger-reducing factor (Lac-Phe) in the body, while sugary drinks have minimal effect.
Obesity is a key driver of type-2 diabetes, and the 2022 Eurostat report revealed that 1 in 5 Irish adults are obese. Indeed, global diabetes cases have more than tripled in the last 20 years alongside the rise in obesity. The cost of managing diabetes represents approximately 9% of EU Member States’ healthcare budgets – totalling €149 billion in 2019.
There is no cure for diabetes and every year in Europe 114,000 people lose their lives from diabetes-related complications.
The scientists today report new insights into how the widely used diabetes drug metformin benefits patients with type-2 diabetes. Metformin is described by some as a “wonder drug” even though we still do not know exactly how it works.
This study shows that metformin increases the amount of an appetite suppressing factor called Lactoyl-Phenylalanine (Lac-Phe), identified in 2022 as a natural appetite suppressant, and which is known to be raised by vigorous exercise.
The scientists probed data from other studies involving large numbers of patients, to conclusively demonstrate that Lac-Phe levels rise after individuals take metformin. This work opens a new avenue for developing targeted anti-obesity treatments.
Barry Scott , first author of the research, is a former stock market trader and now a PhD Candidate in Trinity’s School of Biochemistry and Immunology , based in the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute (TBSI) . He said: “I’m hopeful our research can have a big impact. Metformin is the most prescribed drug for type-2 diabetes, and it’s very safe and well tolerated. How metformin affects appetite was not known, but this work shows that its influence on Lac-Phe is a key part of its hunger suppressing impact.”
The team also discovered that Lac-Phe increases after eating, and so contributes to the feeling of fullness after a meal.
David Finlay, Associate Professor in Immunometabolism, Trinity , who co-supervised the work with Professor Lydia Lynch , Princeton and Harvard Medical Schools , said: “Our study shows that the type of food you eat matters. For instance, eating sugar-rich date fruits caused an immediate and large surge in Lac-Phe, for example, whereas drinking a sugar-rich drink did not. This could help explain why liquid calories can drive obesity.”
Professor Lydia Lynch said: “Identifying the factors that control appetite and satiety after a meal is important to help us to understand and ultimately treat the current obesity epidemic. Further understanding Lac-Phe’s actions may lead to a new class of safe and effective anti-obesity drugs.”
Nature Metabolism