Rimonabant, a brand new fat-loss medicine to be sold under the name Acomplia, has recently been authorised by the EU and is now available to patients in the UK.. The UK is, the very first country that Acomplia will be marketed, however it is thought to be a number of years prior to the medicine is available over the counter.

Rimonabant hones in on visceral fatty tissue, a section of fatty tissue which forms around internal organs. Reducing this section of fatty tissue has been found to stop the manufacture of harmful compounds (such as cholesterol), which stop the body responding to insulin. This effectively means that Rimonabant can lessen the risk of diabetes and heart disease.

Rimonabant is the anorectic anti-morbid obesity, CB1 Cannabinoid receptor antagonist drug. The most vital key of its effect is diminution in desiring food. Developed by Sanofi-Aventis, Acomplia (rimonabant) is a selective CB1 endocannabinoid receptor antagonist indicated for the treatment of morbid obesity. It works by blocking endogenous cannabinoid binding to neuronal CB1 receptors. Activation of these receptors by endogenous cannabinoids, such as anadamide, heightens appetite.

Sanofi worked on the premise that if cannabinoids promote appetite, blocking cannabinoid receptors in the brain may lessen appetite. The main cannabinoid (CB1) receptors are believed to play a role in controlling food intake. To develop appropriate medicines against this goal, the human cannabinoid receptor was initially cloned and then put into in the body.

TheFDA further expressed concerns about an heightened risk of other psychiatric adverse events and adverse neurological events including seizure with rimonabant 20mg, while noting the high numbers of patients who withdrew earlier from the RIO tests during the first year of treatment. In Europe, the EMEA has now taken a similar understanding. The market for fat-reducing medicines has had a chequered history, characterised by major product withdrawals. Although the tests point to a market with enormous opportunity, pharmaceutical businesses have so far been unable to capitalise on the requirement for anti-morbid obesity agents.