Monash researchers identify potential cause and treatment for obesity and insulin resistance

Monash University researchers have shown for the first time that mesenteric (gut) lymphatic dysfunction is a potential cause of and therapeutic target for obesity and insulin resistance.

The groundbreaking study, published in the prestigious journal Nature Metabolism, identified a profoundly damaging cycle in which a high-fat diet promotes dysfunction of the mesenteric lymphatics, which in turn leads to accumulation of abdominal fat. Notably, the study also provides evidence that intervening in this cycle by inhibiting the pathways associated with lymphatic dysfunction may be a treatment for both obesity and associated metabolic disease.

Treatment of the mesenteric lymphatic system with a lymph-targeted COX-2 inhibitor was shown to normalise the structure of the lymphatic vasculature, block weight gain and reverse glucose intolerance and hyperinsulinemia – conditions associated with type 2 diabetes.

Leading the study was a team of researchers from Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences including Associate Professor Natalie Trevaskis, Professor Chris Porter and Dr Enyuan Cao, in collaboration with PureTech Health (Nasdaq: PRTC, LSE: PRTC), a US clinical-stage biotherapeutics company specialising in the discovery, development and commercialisation of highly differentiated medicines for devastating diseases.