SINGAPORE - Scientists from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) have developed a therapy that uses a gel and infrared light to burn fat - a possible safer treatment for people working to control their weight.

Drugs that tackle obesity are meant to accompany exercise and a healthy diet in helping people who are severely obese, including those who have metabolic disorders, but many in the market come with side effects.

Laboratory trials by the NTU team from the School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering show that mice on a high-fat diet that underwent its therapy weighed 5.5 per cent lighter after two weeks, and lost between 40 per cent and 50 per cent of body fat.

In the therapy, a transparent gel - called a hydrogel - developed by the scientists, is injected into a layer of fat under the mice's skin.

Aninfrared light is then shone on the injection site for five minutes a few times a day to trigger the hydrogel's fat-burning ability.

Infrared light refers to wavelengths of light that are not visible to the human eye, but can be felt as heat.

When exposed to the infrared light, nanoparticles in the hydrogel convert light into heat to activate a protein in the body that kick-starts the fat-burning process.

In this process, white fat - which stores excess calories and leads to weight gain - is converted into calorie-burning tissue.

"Fat cells become energy-burning instead of energy-storing," said bioengineering professor Chen Peng, who led the study.

After two weeks of the treatment - which includes eight days of rest - the mice lost 40 per cent of the fat under their skin and 54 per cent of the fat surrounding their internal organs.

The rodents also had lower cholesterol levels and reduced resistance to insulin, suggesting that the procedure has the potential to reduce the risk of metabolic disorders, said NTU in a statement on Tuesday (Jan 25).

Touching on the therapy's safety, the research team said the hydrogel nanoparticles - made of copper sulphide - have negligible toxic effects on vital organs and tissues.

And although the process uses heat converted from the infrared light to burn fat under the skin, the team found no thermal injury to the mice's skin, said Prof Chen.

The hydrogel also contains substances that are approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). For instance, the gel contains an FDA-approved drug for people with overactive bladders, which the NTU team repurposed for its therapy.

The team envisions the therapy being used as a home treatment one day.

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New therapy to tackle obesity by NTU team uses gel and infrared light, safety shown in trials on mice - The Straits Times