(NewsNation) — A new drug, tested in mice, could lead to the development of a new weight-loss drug that mimics exercise, according to new research.

Known as “exercise mimetics,” this proposed class of drugs “mimics” the benefits of exercise, triggering a mechanism that supercharges fat metabolism and encourages lean muscle mass.

The new drug, known as SLU-PP-332, is in the early stages of development but could one day be tested in people to treat diseases like obesity, diabetes and age-related muscle loss. 

“This compound is basically telling skeletal muscle to make the same changes you see during endurance training,” said Thomas Burris, a professor of pharmacy at the University of Florida who led the recent research into the new drug.

Researchers found the drug doesn’t affect appetite or food intake, nor does it cause mice to exercise more.

Instead it “boosts the natural metabolic pathway that responds to exercise.” Researchers found the drug mimics training for a marathon, leading to increased energy expenditure and faster metabolism of fat in the body.

In a paper published in March, researchers reported that they’d successfully designed the drug to boost ERR activity. They also found that the compound allowed normal-weight mice to run 70% longer and 45% further than mice not receiving the drug.

In their latest research, obese mice were tested. The mice were treated twice a day for a month, which caused them to gain 10 times less fat than untreated mice and lose 12% of their body weight. However, they continued to eat the same amount of food and didn’t exercise any more.

The drug hasn’t generated any severe side effects, so far.

Researchers report the next step in developing SLU-PP-332 into a drug candidate is to refine its structure, ideally making it available as a pill instead of an injection. From there, the drug would be tested for side effects in more animal models before starting human trials.