Science scandal: He invented liposuction injection, others took the credit

US-Serbian chemist Svetlana Mojsov (72) is in a similar situation; only in a scientific field where there is still much honor and much, much more money to be made. In recent years, the three scientists have won many prestigious awards for their research work based on their research; But they themselves regularly look at the moon. The famous US science magazine “Science” is reporting on this issue.

An active ingredient for diabetics is generating billions of dollars a year for the fat loss industry

Specifically, it is about the active ingredients in fat removal injections such as Ozempic that are currently widely discussed in the media. It not only helps with weight loss but also helps with high blood pressure and thus can alleviate heart diseases and prevent heart attacks. But Ozempic mainly helps diabetics, for whom it was actually developed: The active ingredient increases a hormone that regulates insulin levels in the body.

A small side note about weight loss: it is not possible here without side effects, the most harmless of which is severe nausea. But most users lose about 2.5 pounds per month with injections until they reach a plateau after losing up to 15 percent of body weight. This is all a billion dollar business. And it’s a field where successful scientists win awards. But not Mojsov.

Mojsov works on his fundamentals with Haberer but only gets the credit

When Mojsov arrived at Rockefeller University in New York as a young graduate student from Belgrade in 1972, he soon met with the renowned biochemist Bruce Merrifield, a renowned chemist who would later win the Nobel Prize for his work with protein fragments called peptides. He was working in his laboratory. . The research focused on how a particular peptide affected insulin levels in fish, rats and rabbits. Mojsov was later hired to continue research with another Nobel Prize contender and head a research laboratory at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Two floors below him, an American biochemist named Joel Haberer (86) and his team were doing similar studies. Haberer offered cooperation to Mojsov. His scientific findings appeared in two different studies in 1986 and 1987. To date, they are considered basic research investigating the effect of peptides called GLP-1, the active ingredient of Ozempic, on the hormonal balance that regulates insulin secretion.

He learned about the patent much later

In 1990 Mojsov returned to New York to Rockefeller University. Her husband, an immunologist, received a lucrative job offer there. Mojsov also moved on to the next high-paying position with a future Nobel Prize winner: He was initially an assistant professor to physician and biochemist Ralph Steinman. At that time, Mojsov already had two young children.

When he came to get information about his previous research in 1996, he got a nasty surprise. Haberer and two other scientists had already registered several patents for their joint research results on GLP-1 in 1992 – without including them. After years of litigation, between 2004 and 2006, Mojsov won justice and his name was included in the patents. And he received financial compensation. After all, the market value of GLP-1 drugs against diabetes and obesity was an incredible $22 billion in 2022.

The world of science lags behind the law

Although Mojsov has since been at least on the side of the law, things are different when it comes to recognition from the scientific world: awards for GLP-1 research, most recently the famous Canadian Gairdner International Prize in 2021, still recognized only Haberer and his comrades-in-arms. Haberer is now even considered a candidate for the Nobel Prize, but Mojsov is not.