A weight-loss drug that targets fat—similar to how some anti-cancer drugs attack tumors—has proven effective in animals. When injected with Adipotide daily for four weeks, obese monkeys lost, on average, 27 percent of their abdominal fat. Adipotide binds to and destroys blood vessels in fat tissue, causing fat cells to die off, says Kirstin F. Barnhart, an assistant professor of comparative medicine at the MD Anderson Cancer Center's research facility in Bastrop, Texas. The drug caused mild kidney problems, but scientists believe they can modify it to overcome this issue, Barnhart says. Testing in people will begin this year, but it may be five to ten years before the drug is available to the general public, she adds.