ERX Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, is developing a first-in-class oral leptin sensitizer based on a new understanding of the biology of obesity.
Leptin is a hormone produced by fat cells that mediates body weight by telling the brain how much to eat and how much energy to expend. Higher leptin levels signal the brain to reduce food intake and increase energy expenditure. Research demonstrating that exogeneous administration of leptin is ineffective as a treatment for obesity suggests that obesity is a condition not of leptin deficiency, but rather one of leptin resistance. That’s why ERX is developing ERX-1000, a leptin sensitizer.
