Grant recipient

Linda Engström Ruud

GLP-1 receptor agonists and their brain-mediated effects: New light on food intake regulation, glycemic control and nausea

Grant amount: DKK 9,677,382

Linda Engström Ruud says: “My project aims at understanding the brain-mediated mechanisms behind the treatment strategy of long-acting glucagon-like 1-receptor (GLP-1R) agonists. GLP-1R agonists have highly beneficial effects on body weight and management of blood glucose levels and are used in the clinic to treat type 2 diabetes and, in the case of liraglutide, also obesity. Still, it is unclear how the appetite-reduction and improvement of glucose tolerance are mediated by the brain. It is also unclear how they induce nausea, a problematic side-effect. I intend to use a top modern approach that will allow me to in vivo specifically study and manipulate neurons that are directly and indirectly activated by long-acting GLP-1R agonists in mice. I will for the first time identify these neurons and study how they are connected. The results can aid in more specific targeted treatment and avoidance of side-effects. Moreover, they will also impact on our basic knowledge of food intake and glucose metabolism regulation.”

Photo by: Johan Wingborg