LEP and obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency: The aminoguanidine carboxylate, BVT.12777 (Figure 1), is one of a series of structurally related molecules based on the anti-diabetic/anti-obesity agent 3-guanidinopropionic acid [19], which, like leptin, have been demonstrated to reduce body weight in obese diabetic (ob/ob) mice [20].