Autogen says exercise affects genes for diabetes, obesity

Shares in drug discovery company Autogen (ASX: AGT) rose more than 15 per cent today after the company announced that nine new genes involved in diabetes and obesity were affected by exercise.

Autogen's CEO, Prof Greg Collier, said that while it had been known for many years that exercise improved diabetes, not much was known about the physiological mechanisms behind this process. "We are interested in what [metabolic] pathways are involved," he said.

Collier said the genes were found using Autogen's Israeli sand rat model for diabetes and obesity. Researchers examined gene expression in the muscles of diabetic animals that responded well to exercise, identifying a number of key genes whose expression appeared to be related to improvement in the disease state after exercise.

The nine genes initially identified have been characterised and the company has applied for patent protection, bringing the total number of genes identified by Autogen's diabetes and obesity program to 49.

According to Collier, the company will now begin to look at how the proteins encoded by the genes work, and the metabolic processes they are involved in, with the purpose of developing new leads for the development of drugs to treat or prevent Type 2 diabetes as well as related diseases such as obesity and heart disease.

"The first gene found might not be the best target, but you can use it to find a better target gene in the pathway," explained Collier. In addition, defects in the genes might point to possible mechanisms for the development of the disease.

Collier said he believed that the expression of the genes might eventually be manipulated to mimic the metabolic effects of exercise in obese or diabetic patients.

"This is obviously something that people have been interested in for a long time," he said. He noted that such drugs would not replace lifestyle changes such as a healthier diet and exercise, but would instead provide an adjunct in the form of positive reinforcement, perhaps kick-starting the process of weight loss.

Collier said Autogen would meet with partner Merck-Sante next week for a regular progress update, and noted that the new genes would probably be at the top of the list for discussion.

Merck-Sante has first rights to commercialise any discoveries coming out of Autogen's diabetes and obesity program, in a partnership slated to last at least until 2006 which includes payment into the company's R&D program, milestone payments and eventually royalties of five to seven percent on drugs taken to market. Merck is also one of the major shareholders in Autogen.

At the time of writing, Autogen's share price had risen four cents to 35 cents.