Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Sep 1;74(9):1512-1524.
doi: 10.2337/db24-0861.

The GLP-1 Receptor Agonist Dulaglutide Attenuates Hepatic Steatosis in Obesity via a Weight-Independent Mechanism

Dharti Shantaram  1 , Xilal Y Rima  1 , David Bradley  2 , Joey Z Liu  1 , Valerie P Wright  1 , Anastasiia Amari  1 , Anahita Jalilvand  3 , Joseph Rottinghaus  1 , Jaden M Fernandes  1 , Alan J Smith  1 , Dana Middendorf  1 , Martha Yearsley  4 , Debasish Roy  5 , Willa A Hsueh  1
Affiliations

The GLP-1 Receptor Agonist Dulaglutide Attenuates Hepatic Steatosis in Obesity via a Weight-Independent Mechanism

Dharti Shantaram et al. Diabetes. .

Abstract

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists are promising therapies in treating various obesity-associated diseases; however, the mechanisms are convoluted with the benefits of weight loss. Dulaglutide has weight-independent therapeutic effects on the liver, reducing hepatic steatosis and improving liver function. Dulaglutide reduces de novo lipogenesis, lipid droplet stability, inflammation, and oxidative stress in the liver and lipolysis in adipose tissue. Weight loss may play an important role in glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists' effect on decreasing coronary vascular disease risk.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Duality of Interest. No potential conflicts of interest relevant to this article were reported.

References

    1. Ward ZJ, Bleich SN, Cradock AL, et al. Projected U.S. state-level prevalence of adult obesity and severe obesity. N Engl J Med 2019;381:2440–2450 - PubMed
    1. Chalasani N, Younossi Z, Lavine JE, et al.; American College of Gastroenterology . The diagnosis and management of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: practice guideline by the American Gastroenterological Association, American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, and American College of Gastroenterology. Gastroenterology 2012;142:1592–1609 - PubMed
    1. Lonardo A, Sookoian S, Chonchol M, Loria P, Targher G. Cardiovascular and systemic risk in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease - atherosclerosis as a major player in the natural course of NAFLD. Curr Pharm Des 2013;19:5177–5192 - PubMed
    1. Bae JC, Rhee EJ, Lee WY, et al. Combined effect of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and impaired fasting glucose on the development of type 2 diabetes: a 4-year retrospective longitudinal study. Diabetes Care 2011;34:727–729 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Romero-Corral A, Montori VM, Somers VK, et al. Association of bodyweight with total mortality and with cardiovascular events in coronary artery disease: a systematic review of cohort studies. Lancet 2006;368:666–678 - PubMed

MeSH terms