Developing revolutionary agents against obesity and diabetes.

Worldwide, almost 500 million people suffer from diabetes, and more than 650 million suffer from obesity - and the trend is only going up. The quality of life of those affected is severely impaired. They are not themselves responsible for their metabolic disease, but genetic factors and environmental influences play a vital role.

There is new hope for these people. Researchers at Helmholtz Munich have developed a drug to combat both obesity and diabetes. It is based on our discovery of the hunger hormone ghrelin, which controls appetite. The drug’s active ingredient mimics this and other hormones and has already led to promising results in clinical trials.

We are also developing completely new therapeutic approaches specifically for people with diabetes. Up until now, doctors have only been able to treat the symptoms but have not found a way to stop the disease itself. We are therefore working on therapies to replace or regenerate beta cells, which produce the vital insulin in our body. In diabetes, their function is severely limited. Recently, our researchers discovered a previously unknown receptor that could be responsible for protecting and regenerating beta cells. This opens up new avenues for treatment.

With these innovations, we can finally get a grip on metabolic diseases that have long since reached epidemic proportions.

(Photo: Lickert/Helmholtz Munich)