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WVU researchers partner with investigators across the world to develop and test potential new obesity treatment

WVU researchers partner with investigators across the world to develop and test potential new obesity treatment

Researchers at the West Virginia University School of Medicine have teamed up with investigators from across the globe to determine how a modified version of the natural compound salicylate can help patients reduce body fat and maintain a healthy body weight.

The study, led by researchers at the Pasteur Institute in Montevideo, Uruguay, brought together 68 authors from 47 academic departments and institutes across Uruguay, Brazil, Denmark, Canada and the United States. Among those contributors were nine WVU researchers, including Associate Professor Roberta Leonardi, Ph.D.

Dr. Leonardi explained that previous studies found that salicylate, the natural compound from which aspirin is derived, showed promise in treating obesity-associated pre-diabetes, but required too high a dosage to decrease blood glucose levels adequately. Capitalizing on these findings, the collaborative research team developed a novel form of salicylate known as nitro-salicylate (SANA), which Leonardi and her colleagues at the WVU School of Medicine ran experiments on in order to test its future applications for patients.

“To increase the chances that SANA will work in human patients, we tested it in preclinical models under thermoneutral conditions, which mimic the temperatures people normally live at and ensure the body does not have to spend extra energy to stay warm, a factor that can influence the compound’s effects," Leonardi said. "My laboratory specializes in conducting metabolic studies at thermoneutrality, a capability not widely available, but one we are fortunate to have here at WVU.”

Through this research, the team concluded that SANA was found to reduce obesity by increasing heat production within the body, improving key metabolic parameters such as body weight and blood glucose levels. Leonardi acknowledged that while there is still much work left to do, these findings present a promising future for patients in West Virginia and beyond.

West Virginia has one of the highest rates of obesity in the United States, and is one of only three states with an obesity prevalence of 40% or greater.

“SANA could be a crucial tool to help address this issue and its associated health risks not only in the Mountain State, but across the country and around the world,” she said.

SANA is currently undergoing clinical trials in Australia, where it has already demonstrated safety and tolerability, suggesting a strong potential to be developed into a new weight loss drug. Leonardi said such significant findings would not be possible if not for the collaborative nature of this project.

“It truly takes a village to design and synthesize a molecule such as SANA, test it in the lab, and ultimately, in patients, all within a single study," she said. “Partnerships like the relationship WVU has with the Pasteur Institute, established by a long-standing collaboration between Dr. Kelley at WVU and Dr. Batthyany in Uruguay, and buttressed by Dr. Hollander, make this scope achievable by involving so many talented people who can approach the research with their own unique perspectives and areas of expertise.”

Leonardi said she looks forward to following the clinical trials for SANA closely and that she is proud of her contribution to a project that has high reproducibility in laboratories worldwide and presents a promising future for patients struggling with obesity.

In addition to Leonardi, the study featured eight more researchers from the WVU School of Medicine, who provided critical data to understand how SANA works. View the full list of contributors at WVU below.

  • Evan DeVallance, Ph.D. – Research Associate Professor, Department of Physiology, Pharmacology and Toxicology
  • Jianhai Du, Ph.D. – Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine and Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences
  • John Hollander, Ph.D. – Professor, Department of Human Performance, Exercise Physiology; Interim Chair, Department of Physiology, Pharmacology and Toxicology
  • Rachel King – Ph.D., Kelley Lab
  • Eric Kelley, Ph.D. – Professor, Department of Physiology, Pharmacology and Toxicology
  • Roberta Leonardi, Ph.D. – Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine
  • Sara Lewis – Biological Scientist, Department of Physiology, Pharmacology and Toxicology
  • Ethan Meadows – Technical Director, WVU School of Medicine Research Corporation
  • Yekai Wang – Lab Technician, Du Lab

To view the full list of the 68 contributors to this project, click here.

To learn more about research opportunities at the School of Medicine, visit medicine.hsc.wvu.edu/research.