Lessons in weight loss: The metabolism of pythons could inspire therapies.
A python’s extraordinary metabolism may unlock new paths to healthy weight loss and even fight age-related muscle loss.
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In less than a decade, new weight-loss drugs have transformed the market, helping millions, but often causing side effects such as nausea or digestive discomfort. What if similar appetite control could be achieved without these drawbacks?
Scientists in the United States have identified a previously unknown molecule that signals to the brain when we’ve eaten enough, in the blood of pythons.
These constricting snakes, reaching up to seven meters, can eat very large meals at once, a whole antelope, for example, and then go on for months or even years without food intake. The research is not about mimicking the snakes’ diet; it is about the fact that pythons can fast and feast without long-term harm to their heart or muscles, which sparked the researchers’ interest.
Is pTOS the new GLP-1?
The molecule, called para-tyramine-O-sulphate (pTOS), was found by Professor Leslie Leinwand and her team at the University of Colorado Boulder while studying the digestive system of these nonvenomous snakes from Africa, Asia, and Australia. The findings, in collaboration with researchers at Stanford Medicine and Baylor University, were published in Nature Metabolism.
The researchers observed that just after eating, a python’s heart expands by 25 percent and and its metabolism speeds up 4,000-fold to help digest the meal, accompanied by a dramatic surge of pTOS in the blood (over 1,000-fold). In humans, pTOS also rises after meals, though more modestly, about two to five times.
The spike in pTOS is part of the digestive process: the body uses an amino acid called tyrosine, which gut bacteria convert into a compound called tyramine. The liver then transforms tyramine into pTOS, which travels to the brain and signals satiety, hence curbing appetite.
The molecule had gone unnoticed in labs because common research animals like mice and rats don’t naturally produce it after eating.
GLP-1, the hormone targeted by drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, helps the body feel full by slowing digestion and regulating blood sugar. Common side effects include nausea, digestive discomfort, and sometimes vomiting.
Weight loss without metabolic harm in mice
In animal studies, mice given pTOS ate less, and long-term treatment led to lower body weight and reduced food intake. These effects occurred without major changes in movement, energy use, or blood sugar, suggesting pTOS could be promising for obesity research.
This discovery reveals a new biological mechanism that helps the body feel full after eating. It could lead to future treatments that naturally reduce hunger and support weight management. But it also highlights the important role of gut bacteria in shaping metabolism and sending signals to the brain. So far, pTOS has only been tested in mice, and its effects in humans have not yet been studied. The appetite-suppressing effect may also be reduced or absent in people with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, suggesting that the body’s natural “fullness signal” may not work as effectively in these conditions.
