“Now researchers at Stanford Medicine and the University of Colorado, Boulder, have found that a metabolite that spikes a thousandfold in pythons after a large meal causes obese laboratory mice to shun their food pellets and lose weight — mimicking the effect of semaglutide drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy.

Although it’s too soon to tell whether this metabolite, called pTOS, will translate to a new weight loss drug in humans, the study solidifies the power of studying extremes in the animal kingdom. Reptiles have repeatedly gifted humans with clinically significant drugs. Snake venom is chockful of biologically active compounds that have been developed into blood pressure medications and anticoagulants. And semaglutide arose from the discovery of a hormone in the Gila monster that regulates blood sugar levels.”

From Stanford Medicine.