Metabolic says new animal data support osteoporosis drug AOD9604

By Elaine Rigoli

Tampa, Fla., June 21 - Metabolic Pharmaceuticals Ltd. said new data shows that its obesity drug, AOD9604, has beneficial effects in preventing bone loss and maintaining bone quality in a rat model of osteoporosis and that the effect occurs in two critical types of bone, the cortical component and the trabecular bone.

This is a very positive result in relation to the potential use of this drug in the prevention or treatment of human osteoporosis, a disease that typically involves loss of both types of bone, the company said in a news release.

The animal study testing the effects of AOD9604 involved 90 female rats, with ovaries removed (OVX) to mimic post-menopausal conditions whereby the rats became obese and had reduced bone quality.

The rats that were treated daily with an oral dose of AOD9604 (over 12 weeks) experienced a 50% reduction in the weight gain caused by the estrogen deficiency in this model and prevention of the loss of bone mass and strength also seen in this model.

The main conclusions of the animal study were that AOD9604 has beneficial effects on obesity and bone, reducing the weight gain and preventing the bone loss; improves bone quality in cortical bone and also to a lesser extent in trabecular bone; and varying doses have different effects in the OVX (osteoporotic) and normal skeletons as well as in cortical and trabecular bone.

Based in Melbourne, Australia, Metabolic develops therapies to treat obesity, obesity-related diseases such as type 2 diabetes, pain and osteoporosis.

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