A ‘natural Ozempic’ peptide
Stanford researchers have identified a small peptide called BRP that appears to mimic appetite‑suppressing effects similar to GLP‑1 drugs but may avoid many of the unpleasant side effects. (The finding was described as early‑stage in a ScienceDaily summary of the Stanford work.) (sciencedaily.com)
Weight-loss drugs work by copying hormones that tell the body it has eaten enough. Stanford researchers say a 12-amino-acid peptide called BRP cut food intake and body weight in mice and pigs, with fewer side effects in those animal tests. (med.stanford.edu) The work was published in *Nature* on March 5, 2025, by a Stanford-led team led by senior author Katrin Svensson and first author Laetitia Coassolo. The paper describes BRP as a “12-mer” peptide, meaning a chain of 12 amino acids. (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) Peptides are small protein fragments, like clipped-out messages from larger proteins. The Stanford team used a computational tool to scan more than 2,600 previously uncharacterized peptide fragments made when enzymes cut larger precursor proteins. (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) The enzyme they focused on, prohormone convertase 1/3, helps process hormone precursors and has been linked to obesity. One well-known product of that system is glucagon-like peptide 1, the appetite and blood-sugar hormone copied by semaglutide drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy. (med.stanford.edu) Semaglutide works in several organs, including the brain, gut and pancreas, which is part of why it can cause nausea, constipation and other gastrointestinal effects. Stanford said BRP appeared to act more specifically in the hypothalamus, a brain region that helps regulate hunger and metabolism. (sciencedaily.com) In the animal studies, BRP reduced food intake and showed anti-obesity effects in mice and pigs without causing nausea or aversion in those experiments. The *Nature* paper also said BRP acted independently of the glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor, leptin and melanocortin 4 receptor pathways. (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) That makes BRP a non-incretin candidate, meaning it does not work through the same gut-hormone signaling route as current glucagon-like peptide 1 drugs. A March 2025 *Nature Reviews Endocrinology* research highlight described it as “a novel anti-obesity peptide that targets the hypothalamus.” (nature.com) The timing matters because glucagon-like peptide 1 medicines have become central to obesity treatment, but response and side effects vary widely. A separate *Nature* study published April 8, 2026, analyzed 27,885 people on glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists and found genetic variants tied to both weight-loss response and nausea or vomiting risk. (nature.com) Stanford’s finding is still preclinical, which means it has not yet been shown to help people in human trials. Svensson said she has co-founded a company to begin human clinical trials “in the near future,” but no clinical results in people were reported in the paper or Stanford’s release. (med.stanford.edu) For now, BRP is a lab-stage lead, not a substitute for approved obesity drugs. The next test is whether the appetite signal seen in mice and pigs can be turned into a safe, effective medicine for humans. (sciencedaily.com)
