|
 
Researcher
Studies Effects of Ephedrine
Work could lead to developing a safe drug
for weight loss
By Matt McGowan
Nicotine and ephedrine have a powerful effect
on the human brain and body. Medical researchers know that in
addition to creating feelings of euphoria, the two addictive
and widely used drugs also suppress weight. Dennis Miller, a
neuropharmacologist at the University of Missouri-Columbia,
uses this knowledge to investigate whether scientists can produce
a safer diet pill.
Miller’s research focuses on the relationship
between human behavior and the chemical processes within the
human brain. He emphasizes that human behavior derives from
the communication among neurons within the complex organ. This
communication is made possible by neurotransmitter, the scientific
name for chemicals that are released from one neuron and activate
or deactivate a nearby neuron.
Many drugs alter brain function and behavior
by increasing or decreasing the amount of neurotransmitter that
is available to communicate with nearby neurons. Different drugs
use different mechanisms to increase or decrease the amount
of neurotransmitter. For example, the success of many weight-reducing
drugs, such as ephedrine, is related to their ability to alter
natural brain functions that normally decrease the amount of
neurotransmitter. In other words, drugs that cause weight loss
increase the amount of neurotransmitter that can interact with
nearby neurons.
Nicotine, the agent in tobacco believed
to be responsible for smoking addiction, also increases the
amount of neurotransmitter. However, rather than causing neurotransmitter
to recycle through neurons, nicotine activates “nicotinic”
receptors. This activation simply leads to more neurotransmitter
being released without being recycled. Thus, weight-loss drugs
and nicotine increase the amount of neurotransmitter that is
available, and in many cases produce similar behaviors. One
such behavior caused by weight-loss drugs and nicotine is the
ability to increase metabolism and decrease food intake.
Of course, Miller and his colleagues do
not recommend smoking as means to control one’s weight.
Ephedrine also has harmful side effects. It activates pathways
in the human brain that are responsible for weight loss, but
it also activates pathways that could lead to dramatic change
in heart rate or blood pressure. Moreover, ephedrine, like nicotine,
produces a “high” and can be addictive.
Miller and his colleagues are investigating
the power of nicotinic receptors as a therapeutic target for
new weight-loss drugs that do not have harmful side effects.
In this effort, they focus their research on determining the
properties of ephedrine and nicotine individually on food consumption
and neurotransmitter levels in the brain. They then will assess
the drugs’ interaction to find any commonalities. The
ultimate goal is to isolate properties that may be responsible
for decreasing food intake and increasing metabolism, as well
as discovering the properties that are responsible for the harmful
side effects. By experimenting with rats in a laboratory, researchers
could develop new drugs that incorporate the “beneficial”
effects of nicotine and ephedrine without the harmful side effects.
“Right now, our research is kind
of a fishing expedition,” Miller says. “We’ve
started with ephedrine. We have decent idea how it works in
the brain. Now we’re trying to concentrate on how it interacts
with nicotine and other targets in the brain.”
Miller does not advocate people relying
solely on a diet pill to lose weight, but he acknowledges that
some people need help beyond exercise and a healthy diet. His
research is a pilot project sponsored by the MU Research Council.
Archives
| Comments | Home SUBSCRIPTIONS
Subscribe
| Change Your
Address | Unsubscribe
Copyright © 2007 — Curators of the University of Missouri
DMCA and other copyright information.
All rights reserved.
An equal opportunity/ADA institution.
Published by the Mizzou Alumni Association
Questions? Comments? E-mail comments@mizzoualumni.org
Last Update:
March 12, 2007
|
