Ashley Trudeau
Project: Muscle preservation in young obese animal models treated with a popular weight-loss drug
“I was surprised by how expensive research can be. Even small items like pipette tips or a single bottle of reagent add up quickly. Seeing how much each experiment depends on these materials has given me a greater appreciation for the resources and funding behind every study, and has encouraged me to be extra careful in my work.”
Summary: Obesity is a serious health issue affecting millions of people worldwide. Many children and teens also struggle with obesity, which can make their lives harder and can lead to serious health problems like diabetes and heart disease. Currently, childhood obesity is primarily treated through lifestyle interventions, including exercise and diet. However, these interventions have shown limited success, leading to increased consideration of medications to help manage weight. As a result, Health Canada recently approved Ozempic-like medications for adolescents aged 12 and older.
We recently investigated the effects of semaglutide on skeletal muscles of mice. Marketed as Ozempic and Wegovy, semaglutide mimics a hormone released from the gut, and promotes feelings of fullness, helps treat diabetes and reduces fat mass, making it effective in treating obesity. However, our findings show that semaglutide treatment leads to reduced skeletal muscle mass, indicating a potential risk to muscle health. Given this, it is crucial to study the effects of semaglutide on children living with obesity. In fact, semaglutide's effect on muscle mass may be more significant in youth, when organ growth is at its peak.
To study this, we will develop unique juvenile obese animal models that mirror childhood obesity, treat them with semaglutide and thoroughly evaluate their skeletal muscles. We believe this project will give us important information about how this drug may affect the muscles of children with obesity and how we could protect muscle health.
Ashley Trudeau was supervised by Dr. Jason Dyck in the Department of Pediatrics in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry. Her WCHRI summer studentship was funded by the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation. She is enrolled in a bachelor's degree program at the University of Alberta.
Read more about WCHRI’s training awards for students at all levels and generous grants for researchers. See the rest of the 2026 summer studentship recipients here.
