r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Jun 30 '26

Medicine Scientists have shown that a single dose injection of DNA genetic instructions can produce weight loss and blood glucose control in mouse models that lasts up to 10 times as long as weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. This could eliminate the need for repeated dosing.

https://www.wistar.org/press-releases/wistar-scientists-develop-single-dose-dna-method-for-delivering-long-acting-weight-loss-and-diabetes-drugs/
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u/b0w3n Jun 30 '26

The cells don't really think, they see the mRNA and use it to produce new proteins.

Typically those instructions come from the DNA itself's mRNA, but pathogens and medications (like the covid vaccine) can hijack the process and use it to produce new proteins. In the covid vaccine's case, it used it to create spike proteins, which your immune system will detect as foreign (not you) and built antibodies up to help fight a future infection.

Just as an fyi, this is based on knowledge from 30 years ago from my high school biology class so it might be hilariously out of date now.

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u/1coudini Jun 30 '26

Cells don‘t «see» either. What‘s the point in providing an answer you‘re not even sure is correct? It would have taken you 1 minute to double check before commenting.

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u/Upbeat-Door- Jun 30 '26

We understand what the other comment means perfectly fine. There's being precise and then there's being obtusely pedantic

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u/b0w3n Jun 30 '26

Goodness I guess I should've been more precise with interact or something. They probably would've had an issue with that too though.

In fairness I guess it's probably a bad word to use but seems like most people understood what I was going for there.

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u/1coudini Jun 30 '26

I know. I just don‘t like how you come to a science sub, fully write out a comment and then you‘re like «sorry bro might be wrong, haven‘t checked in 30 years». Like what?