{"id":415609,"date":"2025-11-30T18:42:21","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T18:42:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/415609\/"},"modified":"2025-11-30T18:42:21","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T18:42:21","slug":"scientists-find-popular-diabetes-drug-impacts-the-brain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/415609\/","title":{"rendered":"Scientists Find Popular Diabetes Drug Impacts the Brain"},"content":{"rendered":"

With buzzy medications like Ozempic<\/a> and Mounjaro<\/a> making headlines for blood sugar management, it\u2019s easy to forget that some medications have been helping patients with type 2 diabetes<\/a> for decades. Metformin is a popular one. But while this medication has been around for more than 60 years, scientists are uncovering what it does to the brain. <\/p>\n

New research published in the journal Science Advances<\/a> identifies a brain pathway that metformin seems to work through (along with the impact it has on other areas of the body). It\u2019s been generally accepted that metformin lowers blood sugar by reducing how much glucose the liver puts out, but this study found that a lot of that glucose regulation seems to happen in the brain.<\/p>\n

Meet the experts<\/strong>: Christoph Buettner, M.D., Ph.D.<\/a>, chief of the division of endocrinology at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School; Kelly Johnson-Arbor, M.D.<\/a>,<\/a> a toxicologist at MedStar Health; Jamie K. Alan, Ph.D.,<\/a> an associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University<\/p>\n

In a previous mouse study, the same research team found a protein in the brain called Rap1, which impacted how glucose is broken down in the body. During that study, the researchers found that metformin traveled to an area of the brain called the ventromedial hypothalamus, where it essentially turned off Rap1. <\/p>\n

The researchers then bred mice that didn\u2019t have Rap1 and found that metformin had no impact on their blood sugar management, even though other medications did. Overall, the findings suggest that metformin has a big impact on the brain. <\/p>\n

But why does this matter? Here\u2019s what doctors want you to know.<\/p>\n

What is metformin?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Metformin is an oral medication in a class of drugs called biguanides that is commonly used to treat type 2 diabetes, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine<\/a>. The medication is designed to help control the amount of glucose (or sugar) in the blood. \u201cMetformin has been used for decades to treat diabetes, although there has been extensive research on its use in other conditions like cancer and PCOS,\u201d says Jamie K. Alan, Ph.D.,<\/a> an associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University.<\/p>\n

Metformin specifically decreases the amount of glucose you absorb from food, as well as the amount of glucose made by the liver, per Alan. At the same time, the drug increases the body\u2019s response to insulin, a hormone that controls the amount of glucose in the blood. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere are likely more complex mechanisms also at play,\u201d Alan says.<\/p>\n

Metformin is being explored for other health conditions, too. \u201cBecause metformin can pass through the bloodstream and into the brain, scientists have also studied whether it may be an effective treatment for depression and neurological disorders,\u201d says Kelly Johnson-Arbor, M.D.<\/a>,<\/a> a toxicologist at MedStar Health.<\/p>\n

Why does this matter?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Even though metformin has been widely used for decades, the details about how it works haven\u2019t been totally figured out. \u201cAmazingly, even though metformin is a drug that has been used for more than six decades in the U.S., we still do not fully understand how it works,\u201d says Christoph Buettner, M.D., Ph.D.<\/a>, chief of the division of endocrinology at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. \u201cIt\u2019s the most prescribed diabetes drug in the world.\u201d
<\/p>\n

These findings suggest it could impact the brain, liver, and gut. \u201cIt is valuable to learn how this works in the brain,\u201d Alan says. \u201cThere is so much we don\u2019t know about satiety and central mechanisms behind appetite and blood sugar control.\u201d <\/p>\n

The findings \u201cchange the way we think about metformin,\u201d Dr. Buettner says. \u201cIt supports the important role the brain plays in glucose metabolism,\u201d he continues. \u201cIt also may explain why metformin causes modest weight loss, changes in appetite and hunger, and possible effects on brain aging or cognition, as these are brain effects.\u201d<\/p>\n

Metformin is also \u201cextremely affordable,\u201d Alan says. \u201cIt\u2019s oral, so no injections are needed,\u201d she adds. (By comparison, Ozempic and Mounjaro are injectable medications.) As a result, finding new ways to use it or similar treatments would be a big win for the diabetes community and beyond, she says. <\/p>\n

These findings could potentially lead to new and better treatments for a range of diseases, according to Dr. Johnson-Arbor. \u201cBy studying the effects of metformin outside of the liver, scientists may be able to find new applications of this decades-old drug, such as novel treatments for diabetes, neurological disorders, and heart disease,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

What happens now?<\/strong><\/p>\n

These are new findings, so more research is needed. However, the study\u2019s research team also shared in a press release<\/a> that they plan to dive deeper into how metformin impacts the brain, including looking at humans. <\/p>\n

Still, experts say this is just the start. \u201cThe research is a long way from the clinic, but it is important,\u201d Alan says. <\/p>\n

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