HealthDay - Weight-Loss Drug Fights Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
Mice given the weight-loss drug rimonabant became resistant to alcohol’s fat-building effects in the liver, which suggests the medication may help fight alcoholic fatty liver in humans, says a U.S. study.
Alcoholism is the leading cause of liver disease in Western societies, according to background information in the study.
Rimonabant, which blocks cannabinoid receptors, is approved for weight loss in several European countries but has not been approved in the United States. Last June, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration panel recommended that rimonabant should not be given the FDA’s blessing because of continuing concerns about increased risks for suicidal thoughts among some users.
Related Results
Lancet, BMJ studies sound concern over anti-obesity drug rimonabantRimonabant improves cardiovascular risk profileRimonabant improves cardiovascular risk profileNew drug application for rimonabant pulledRimonabant enhanced weight loss success, improved lipids
In this latest study, the researchers found that mice fed a low-fat diet and ethanol showed an increase in the gene encoding the CB1 cannabinoid receptor and in liver levels of an endocannabinoid called 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG). These mice developed fatty …
Read the full article with a Free Trial at MyWire.
