A Review on Drug Induced Obesity and Rodent Experimental Models of Obesity in Animals

Obesity is defined by an imbalance between energy expenditure and energy consumption. Presently, it is considered a global problem because people are consuming junk food and doing less physical activity in every country of the world. It is all due to sedentary life style. The currently available drugs for the treatment of obesity are not giving satisfactory results as they have many adverse effects along with rebound obesity complications. To evaluate new drug in pre-clinical study, we need to have better supportive animal models. Obesity can be induced by giving drugs, fat food, surgical procedures, and by genetic modifications. In the present review, various obesity induced models have been explained to evaluate new compounds. In experimental animal models, monogenic and polygenic obesity models have been reviewed, with a proper pathway to prepare new drugs being given. While in the existing models, genetic obesity models were not explained so far, here genetic engineered transgenic models were described to evaluate new anti-obesity drugs. This short review on chemically and surgically induced obesity models aimed to provide a better understanding of the experimental design of obesity.