Of note, clinical testing of GDF-15 analogs is underway; a phase 1 clinical trial that evaluated the safety and tolerability of NGM395 (an engineered long-acting variant of GDF-15) in adults with obesity (part 1) and in adults with NAFLD (part 2) has been completed and its results are anticipated (ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT04187339). Here, GDF15 is linked to obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency.