New skin patch ‘can reduce excess fat and treat metabolic disorders’

A new medicated skin patch has been developed by scientists with the potential to help people shed excess fat while also addressing metabolic disorders.

Researchers from Columbia University Medical Center and the University of North Carolina have created a patch that can act as a delivery mechanism for drugs to help convert energy-storing white fat into energy-burning brown fat, while raising the body's overall metabolism.

In the past, drugs that promote browning have had to be given as pills or injections, exposing the whole body to their effect in a way that leads to side effects such as stomach upsets, weight gain and bone fractures.

The new skin patch alleviates these complications by delivering the drugs directly to fat tissue. This is accomplished by encasing them in nanoparticles and loading them into a skin patch containing dozens of microscopic needles that allow them to be released in a targeted way.

It is thought that these patches could be developed into a noninvasive alternative to liposuction for reducing the patches of belly fat known colloquially as love handles.

Study co-leader Dr Li Qiang, assistant professor of pathology and cell biology at Columbia University Medical Center, added: "What's much more important is that our patch may provide a safe and effective means of treating obesity and related metabolic disorders such as diabetes."

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