Until now, the notion of a fat-melting cream, though largely desired, has remained the stuffs of fiction. There's a new topical fat fighter called XAF5 that's in the trial stages (first target: under eye bags), and if it lives up to its promise, it could be bigger than Botox.
Like Botox and Latisse, XAF5 was discovered by chance. Glaucoma patients taking part in a trial of new eye drops to reduce eye pressure noticed a side effect that was highly welcomed: less fullness under the treated eye.
The ophthalmologists leading the study—Michael Singer and Murat Kalayoglu, suspected there was something in the compound giving chemical instructions to the fat in the area, making it to shrink.
Seeing the possibilities, they started a company called Topokine Therapeutics and developed a nonirritating ointment using the same molecule that was in the eye drops. Because of the ointment's formulation, it reduces fat without affecting eye pressure.
Though FDA approval may not come before 2018, studies are already underway to test XAF5 on under-chin fat.