Sirtris Pharmaceuticals: Novel, Potent SIRT1 Activator Reduces Fat, Boosts Endurance And Improves Insulin Sensitivity In A Pre-Clinical Model Of Type 2 Diabetes
Cambridge, MA - Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing small molecule drugs to treat diseases of aging such as Type 2 Diabetes, announced that one of its new chemical entities, which is structurally unrelated to and one thousand times more potent than resveratrol, reduces fat, boosts exercise endurance and improves insulin sensitivity in mice on a high-fat diet.
Johan Auwerx, MD, PhD, a member of Sirtris' Scientific Advisory Board and Professor at the Medical Faculty of the University of Strasburg, France, will present the unpublished data at the Keystone Symposia on Diabetes Mellitus, Insulin Action and Resistance Conference on Saturday, January 26 from 8-11:30 am CST.
The new data will show that mice on a high-fat diet treated with one of Sirtris' new chemical entities (NCEs) remained lean while consuming the same number of calories as the untreated mice. Mice on the highest dose of the NCE had no weight gain over 13 weeks, and in exercise testing, ran over 1,600 meters before tiring, while the untreated mice tired at roughly 800 meters.
The treated mice also showed lowered glucose, improved insulin sensitivity and increased energy expenditure due to an increase in the number and function of mitochondria, the powerhouses of the cell. These results are similar to a study previously published in the November 2006 issue of Cell by Dr. Auwerx when mice were treated with resveratrol.
"In this study we demonstrated that Sirtris' new chemical entity stimulates the SIRT1 enzyme, and mimics the powerful effects we've seen in earlier studies but with lower dosage levels," said Auwerx. "This activity provides evidence of a potential new, front-line therapy for Type 2 Diabetes."
"We plan to have one of our new development compounds in a human clinical trial in the first half of this year," said Sirtris Pharmaceuticals Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chair Christoph Westphal, MD, PhD. "In Dr.Auwerx's study we see lowered glucose levels and improved insulin sensitivity, characteristics of other oral agents for Type 2 Diabetes."
SOURCE: Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, Inc.