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The weight-loss drug Wegovy may also help treat addiction

Researchers see promise in semaglutide drugs, which may tap into the brain’s reward circuits

A retail package of the semaglutide weight-loss drug Wegovy sits on a table

Researchers who study addiction suspect that the diabetes and weight-loss drug semaglutide may affect the brain in a way that could help treat substance use disorders.

Sipa via AP Images

By Laura Sanders

A class of powerful drugs can dramatically change people’s body weight. But one of the drugs’ most alluring jobs may happen in a spot that’s harder to see: the brain.