Elenolic acid, a substance found naturally in olives, has demonstrated promise as a possible therapy for type 2 diabetes and obesity.
After one week of treatment, researchers from Virginia Tech in the US found that elenolic acid decreased blood sugar levels as well as, or even better than, two popular drugs in mice models of the health conditions.
Dongmin Liu, a nutrition scientist at Virginia Tech, states that “lifestyle modifications and public health measures have had limited impact on the rising prevalence of obesity, one of the top risk factors for type 2 diabetes.”
The current generation of obesity medications is costly, inefficient at maintaining weight loss, and/or associated with long-term safety concerns. Our objective was to create multi-targeting drugs that can stop metabolic diseases and type 2 diabetes before they started, at a lower cost, with more safety and convenience.”
The impulses that come from our stomach are mostly orchestrated by chemical signals. Using mice from Liu’s lab, the researchers previously discovered that elenolic acid causes the release of two metabolic hormones that help us recognise when to stop eating by sending a signal to the brain indicating that we are full.
Ozempic and related medications mimic several hormones, including glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), which is involved in blood sugar regulation and satiety. The second, less well-known peptide YY (PYY), is secreted by stomach cells to suppress your hunger after a meal.
Previous studies by the researchers showed that GLP-1 and PPY production was enhanced by even a single dosage of concentrated elenolic acid. Furthermore, after receiving dosages of 50 mg/kg/day for two weeks, obese mice on a high-fat diet developed glucose tolerance and fasting blood glucose levels comparable to those of their counterparts on a regular diet.
Hana Alkhalidy, a clinical nutritionist from Virginia Tech, presented the new research, which hasn’t been peer-reviewed, at NUTRITION 2024 in Chicago on June 29.
Liu, Alkhalidy, and associates describe in the abstract of their presentation that elenolic acid was administered orally to mice that had diet-induced obesity and type 2 diabetes. The number of mice used in the tests as well as the treatment’s dosage, concentration, frequency, and duration are not yet known.
When compared to mice in the two situations that did not get elenolic acid, the researchers find that after just one week of treatment, the mice weighed substantially less and had better-regulated blood sugar levels.
In contrast to GLP-1 receptor agonists like Ozempic, which can activate the receptor in place of the actual thing by passing for GLP-1, elenolic acid provides a less direct method that causes the body to produce more of its own metabolic hormones.
Liu’s team claims that its blood glucose-reducing impact was superior to metformin, the first-line medication for lowering blood glucose levels in people with type 2 diabetes, and comparable to the GLP-1 receptor agonist liraglutide.
“Overall, the study showed that elenolic acid from olives has promising effects on hormone release and metabolic health, particularly in obese and diabetic conditions,” Liu states.
“The compound seems to mimic the physiological conditions of eating to directly promote gut metabolic hormone secretion, which helps regulate energy balance and metabolic health.”
Elenolic acid is present in ripe olives (Olea europaea) and extra virgin olive oil, but it may also be produced more affordably by decomposing its precursor, oleuropein, which is also found in the plant’s leaves and seeds.
According to the researchers, you probably couldn’t consume enough extra virgin olive oil or eat enough olives to reap the health benefits they saw in their tests. Additionally, due to its bitter flavour, oleuropein has been purposefully eliminated from the majority of olive products you may consume.
Furthermore, unless further trials are carried out, we won’t be able to determine the whole impact of concentrated elenolic acid on people, just like with any mouse experiment.
By following elenolic acid’s route through the body, the team is currently examining how it impacts metabolism and gathering data regarding its safety for potential clinical trials.
Although papers are assessed and chosen for presentation by a team of specialists, the early findings are not yet subjected to peer review.
This research was presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition, NUTRITION 2024.
