Antiobesity effects of a novel lipid synthesis inhibitor (Ro 22-0654).

The present studies were conducted to determine the antiobesity effects of a novel inhibitor of hepatic fatty acid synthesis, 4-amino-5-ethyl-3-thiophene-carboxylic acid methyl ester hydrochloride (Ro 22-0654/001). Weight gain was decreased by treatment with Ro 22-0654 in Sprague Dawley and in lean or obese Zucker rats. Food intake was only transiently suppressed during the first few days of each study. The decreased weight gain in treated rats could be accounted for almost entirely by a decrease in total body lipid levels. Hepatic fatty acid synthesis was inhibited following two months of treatment, in rats fed either a 1% or 10% corn oil diet. It is suggested that the inhibition of hepatic fatty acid synthesis may account, in part, for the reduced weight gain.