Slashdot Mirror
Banned Weight-loss Drug Could Combat Liver Disease, Diabetes
sciencehabit writes: A drug the U.S. government once branded "extremely dangerous and not fit for human consumption" deserves a second chance, a study of rats suggests. Researchers report (abstract) that a slow-release version of the compound reverses diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), an untreatable condition that can lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer.
Title and summary didn't name the subject of the article, adding here.
The drug is dinitrophenol. From the medical texts:
DNP is an ATP inhibitor, which means it prevents cell mitochondria from synthesising ATP from simple sugars. Taken in excess, DNP can cause cell death by starvation and organism death by hyperthermia (it causes an imbalance in the proton gradient which results in the release of large amounts of heat). The good: you'll be thin. The bad: you'll be dead. But at least you won't be cold.
Industrial uses include a precursor to sulphur dyes, and a component in liquid and plastic explosives. The US FDA and the UK's Food Standards Agency have both condemned DNP as a dangerous industrial chemical that should not be taken internally. Doses as low as 20mg/kg (in humans) are shown to be lethal (http://dx.doi.org/10.1081%2Fclt-200058946).
Political debates have me rolling my eyes so much I think I got optical whiplash. I should sue. - Foamy The Squirrel
water isn't a rust remover, neither is sugar syrup.
The amount of phosphoric acid used in cola is so minute it's barely detectable, but yes it is an active corrosive and yes it does cause demineralisation of tooth enamel.
Political debates have me rolling my eyes so much I think I got optical whiplash. I should sue. - Foamy The Squirrel
I can. It's a butt ugly standard dropdown box but it works.
"I'm not much interested in interoperability. I want substitutability. I want to be able to throw your software out."
We have had Cola for generations.... However the health conditions that we blame it for, have been on the rise just recently.
I see the use of Corn Syrup being a bigger factor than blaming Cola.
Corn Syrup, increasing portion sizes, a shift to low fat, high carb diets, labeling bad fats as good and good fats as bad.... The past 50 years has not been a good period for nutritional science.
I browse on +1 so AC's need not respond, I won't see it.