Taranabant produced side effects such as depression

Hopes have been dashed after an experimental new weight loss medication was given the boot following clinical testing. The drug which was in its phase three testing stage was being developed by the pharmaceutical company Merck and was considered to be a potential blockbuster a couple of years ago.

The drug called taranabant is an appetite suppressant which works in a very similar way to the drug rimonabant which is sold as Acomplia. Taranabant therefore was designed to work on brain receptors which control the desire to eat. This class of drugs are known as cannabinoid-receptors and it is likely that in the future many more will be developed.

The reason why Merck are calling off the clinical testing on taranabant is because the side effects were deemed to be too risky when effective doses were given. Merck said that their clinical studies with Taranabant produced side effects such as depression, irritability and anxiety which could not be justified.

The weight loss medication Acomplia which is made by the French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi Aventis not only has approval from the European medicines authority but also has a positive recommendation from the National Institute of Clinical Excellence in the United Kingdom. Despite this the Food & Drug Administration in America are still requiring further testing before they give it a green light and thus the drug is not for sale over there yet.

Recent news which shows that the weight loss medication Reductil is more effective with people with certain genetic patterns has led to doctors realising that individuals respond to individual weight loss medications differently. So in the same way that Reductil is very beneficial for certain obese men and women it is also likely that Acomplia will work better for some people than others. The weight loss medication Acomplia is a prescription drug.