New two-hormone Roche drug shows promise in diabetes, obesity

By Ben Hirschler LONDON (Reuters) - An experimental drug that mimics the effects of two naturally occurring hormones appears to work significantly better than existing single-hormone medicines against diabetes and obesity, scientists said on Wednesday. A team of German and U.S.-based researchers said they are using "mother nature's toolkit" to seek a breakthrough for treating type 2 diabetes and related obesity which is affecting rapidly growing numbers of people in the West and many developing nations. The new dual-action molecule, which is being developed by Swiss drugmaker Roche, targets receptors for hormones known as GLP-1 and GIP that play a critical role in regulating the body's metabolism. Currently approved injectable drugs such as Novo Nordisk's Victoza and Byetta from Bristol-Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca mimic only GLP-1.



via Health News Headlines - Yahoo! News http://news.yahoo.com/two-hormone-roche-drug-shows-promise-diabetes-obesity-180420551--finance.html