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The miracle pill that can make you fit without moving a muscle
By Fiona Macrae Last updated at 5:58 PM on 31st July 2008
An 'exercise pill' that makes the body fit without moving a muscle has been hailed by scientists following stunning test results.
The drug fools the muscles into thinking they have exercised long and hard, rapidly burning fat and boosting fitness.
The couch potato's dream, it gives the benefits of exercise without leaving the sofa.
Billed as 'exercise in a pill', it could combat ills from obesity to muscle-wasting diseases.
Scientists found the drug boosts fat burning and stamina in inactive mice
Even the frailty of old age could be eased by the drug's muscle-building powers, the US scientists believe.
Ronald Evans, one of the researchers and a world-leading biologist, said: ''We have exercise in a pill.'.
Professor Evans, of the Salk Institute in California, showed that the drug, which is known as AICAR, boosts fat burning and stamina in inactive mice.
'Couch-potato' animals that took AICAR for four weeks burned more calories and had less fat than untreated mice.
And when tested on a treadmill, they could run almost 50 per cent longer than untreated mice.
Effectively, the creatures had become fit without moving a muscle, a feat that Professor Evans said left him 'blown away'.
'It is tricking the muscle into "believing" it's been exercised daily,' he said.
'It's basically the couch-potato experiment and it proves you can have a pharmacological equivalent to exercise.'
A second drug, GW1516, produced even better results - but only in conjunction with regular exercise, the journal Cell reports.
After a month of taking that drug and exercising, mice could run 70 percent further than other mice that had worked out on the treadmill but didn't get the drug.
'The dramatic effect of the drug was stunning,' said the professor.
It is thought the drugs reprogramme the muscles, boosting the number of fat-burning fibres and allowing them to contract repeatedly without tiring.
The study builds on work from four years ago, in which the Californian researchers genetically-engineered 'marathon mice' that were able to run twice as far as normal without tiring.
Now, it seems it is possible to create drugs with a similar effect.
The researchers say their work offers hope for the obese, as well as for those with muscle-wasting diseases and people who can't exercise because of a medical condition like joint pain or heart failure.
Even the frailty of old age could be eased by the drugs' effect on the muscles.
The drugs' obvious interest to athletes has led to the development of tests that will detect them in samples of blood or urine.
Importantly, given the obesity crisis, the pills could offer the benefits of exercise to people who can't find time to fit the gym into their hectic working day.
'Almost no one gets the recommended 40 minutes to an hour per day of exercise,' said Professor Evans.
'For this group of people, if there was a may to mimic exercise, it would make the quality of the exercise that they do more efficient.
'This might be enough to move people out of the "danger zone" toward a lower risk, healthier set point.
'By intervening early, you may forestall the emergence of more serious problems.'
But fellow researcher Dr Vihang Narkar cautioned a pill would not be a panacea, saying a healthy diet and exercise are 'cardinal' to good health.
AICAR, the version that worked without exercise, is already in advanced human testing to see if it can prevent a complication of heart bypass surgery.
The second drug was being tested as a cholesterol-lowering pill. However, trials were halted over concerns about safety.
British experts welcomed the breakthrough but cautioned the path from the lab to the pharmacy shelf is not always straight forward.
Professor Stephen Bloom, of Imperial College London, said: 'This was a discovery waiting to be made and it has taken one of the premier institutes in the world and one of the best minds in science to have done it.
'Even if these particular agents turn out to have side-effects, the proof of principle is still there and we can look forward to someone making something which is safe and effective.'
Dr Colin Waine, of the National Obesity Forum, said: 'Obesity has reached epidemic proportions and we constantly need to be looking for innovative ways of treating the condition.
'This research is important, interesting and could ultimately lead to new drug treatments.
'But anybody with a weight problem shouldn't be lulled into thinking there is a quick-fix around the corner.
'At the moment, the mainstay has to be healthy eating and increased physical activity.'
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