Video feature: Developing a treatment for obesity based on natural appetite suppression

06 October 2010

Research by Professor Steve Bloom and his team has identified the role played by gut hormones in appetite control, and has been the starting point to develop a new drug to tackle obesity.

Over 30 000 deaths a year are caused by obesity in England alone and yet the need for safe and effective anti-obesity therapies is largely unmet. With funding from the Wellcome Trust's Seeding Drug Discovery initiative in 2007, Professor Bloom and his team have developed a novel, synthetic form of pancreatic polypeptide that can cause a significant reduction in food intake and body weight in mice. The lead compound, PP1420, entered phase I clinical trials in mid-2010. If successful, the proposed research may lead to a treatment within five - eight years.

Running time: 3 min 43 s
View this video on YouTube
Take our video survey and you could win a £100 voucher.