Four weeks of treatment reduced weight by about 11 per cent in overweight rhesus monkeys, a study showed.

Body mass index and waistline were also reduced, along with a ‘substantial decrease’ in body fat.
The drug could provide an alternative to treatments aimed at suppressing appetite or increasing metabolism, which can have toxic side-effects, say scientists.
Prof Renata Pasqualini, a senior member of the US team behind the discovery, said: ‘Development of this compound for human use would provide a non-surgical way to actually reduce accumulated white fat, in contrast to current weight-loss drugs that attempt to control appetite or prevent absorption of dietary fat.’
Once the blood supply has gone, fat cells are reabsorbed and metabolised by the body, say researchers.
They hope the drug, called adipotide, could prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease and reduce the risk of cancer.
Scientists will now study obese prostate cancer patients.


Read more: metro