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In a survey that drew responses from nearly 28,000 people taking these drugs, weight loss ranged from modest to dramatic.<\/p>\n
Working from those reports, scientists at the 23andMe Research Institute<\/a> traced part of that divide to a receptor gene tied directly to the drugs\u2019 action.<\/p>\n Each copy of the key variant linked to about 1.7 extra pounds lost, a modest gain that still marked a clear genetic edge.<\/p>\n That edge does not explain most of the difference between patients, which is why the rest of the picture still needs to be filled in.<\/p>\n Where genes act<\/p>\n That receptor sits on cells that help control appetite, so a tiny DNA change can alter the message these drugs deliver.<\/p>\n The team found the signal in GLP1R, the gene that controls how the body responds to these drugs<\/a>, rather than in a distant helper pathway.<\/p>\n Because that DNA change alters the receptor\u2019s protein directly, it is easier to connect the variant to the drug\u2019s effect.<\/p>\n Researchers think the altered protein may help more receptors reach the cell surface, which could strengthen the drug signal.<\/p>\n Side effects overlap<\/p>\n One clue came from the same stretch of DNA when the team looked at people reporting nausea or vomiting.<\/p>\n Signals near GLP1R tracked with those stomach side effects, which fits the idea that stronger receptor<\/a> activity can cut both ways.<\/p>\n In the dataset, people with more nausea or vomiting also tended to show greater weight loss on these drugs.<\/p>\n That link does not mean feeling sicker is good, but it hints that benefit and burden can share biology.<\/p>\n A second receptor<\/p>\n Unlike semaglutide, a drug that mimics a natural hormone to reduce appetite, tirzepatide also activates a second hormone pathway that can change how the stomach and brain react.<\/p>\n In that extra pathway, a variant in GIPR \u2013 a gene<\/a> that helps cells respond to a gut hormone linked to digestion \u2013 raised vomiting risk only in tirzepatide. This drug targets two hormone systems instead of one.<\/p>\n People carrying high-risk versions at both receptor genes had about 15 times the odds of vomiting on tirzepatide.<\/p>\n That drug-specific pattern matters because it separates a semaglutide story from a tirzepatide story instead of lumping them together.<\/p>\n Limits of genetic influence<\/p>\n Genes were not the biggest driver, and the analysis is careful about that point throughout.<\/p>\n Sex, drug choice, dose, time on treatment, and diabetes status explained more of the weight-loss difference than genetics did.<\/p>\n Among participants, women tended to lose more weight, and people with type 2 diabetes tended to lose less.<\/p>\n That balance keeps the finding useful and honest, since DNA explains part of the story rather than the whole thing.<\/p>\n Estimating treatment response<\/p>\n After combining genes with medical history, the group could sort people into meaningfully different response groups.<\/p>\n That model explained about one-quarter of the difference in weight loss from person to person, with most power coming from non-genetic inputs.<\/p>\n In a public blog<\/a>, the team said projected one-year outcomes ran from about 6% to 20% weight loss.<\/p>\n Nausea or vomiting risk in the same tool stretched from 5% to 78%, showing how wide the gap can be.<\/p>\n Records backed surveys<\/p>\n Survey answers made the study possible, but medical records gave the team a tougher test.<\/p>\n When 195 people had both sources, the two measures moved together, although self-reported weight loss still ran higher.<\/p>\n A separate check in the NIH\u2019s All of Us program found the main efficacy signal again, which strengthened confidence in the result.<\/p>\n That cross-check also exposed a limit, because people remember treatment differently and health records often miss care received elsewhere.<\/p>\n Growing use of these drugs<\/p>\n Use of GLP-1 receptor agonists, drugs that copy gut signals and curb appetite, has spread fast across the United States.<\/p>\n One national poll<\/a> found about one in eight U.S. adults had already tried one of these medications.<\/p>\n In a pivotal semaglutide trial<\/a>, adults with overweight or obesity lost about 14.9% of body weight after 68 weeks.<\/p>\n A large tirzepatide trial<\/a> pushed average loss even higher, which explains why response differences now matter so much.<\/p>\n Limits of current use<\/p>\n Clinicians still cannot use a cheek swab to pick the perfect drug, dose, or pace for any one patient.<\/p>\n Even so, the study sketches precision medicine, treatment tailored to a person\u2019s biology, in a field still dominated by trial and error.<\/p>\n \u201cIdentifying these variants in the GLP1R and GIPR genes provides an important new insight into why these medications impact people<\/a> in distinct ways,\u201d said Dr. Adam Auton, Vice President of Human Genetics at 23andMe Research Institute.<\/p>\n For now, the most sensible next step is larger and more diverse testing that shows when genetics changes an actual prescription.<\/p>\n Next steps in research<\/p>\n What emerges is a sharper picture of why the same popular drugs can feel powerful, disappointing, or intolerable across patients.<\/p>\n As datasets expand beyond mostly female and mostly European samples, the promise will depend on showing that these signals can guide better choices in clinics.<\/p>\n The study is published in Nature<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2013<\/p>\n Like what you read?\u00a0Subscribe to our newsletter<\/a>\u00a0for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.<\/p>\n Check us out on\u00a0EarthSnap<\/a>, a free app brought to you by\u00a0Eric Ralls<\/a>\u00a0and Earth.com.<\/p>\n \u2014\u2013<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A new study has found that common DNA changes can help determine how much weight people lose on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":402544,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[163,85,46,482],"class_list":["post-402543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-medication","tag-health","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-medication"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402543","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=402543"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402543\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/402544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=402543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=402543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=402543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}