Fat cells: from fat storage to the kiln
All content is checked by medical journalists.Not all fat is the same: while white adipose tissue stores energy in the form of fat, brown fat cells burn the reserves and give them off in the form of heat. If it were possible to convert the fat stores in overweight people into fat burners, excess cushion could simply be melted away. The transformation has already been successful in the experiment with mouse cells.
Obesity is not only an aesthetic problem, but also a health problem. As the pounds increase, so does the risk of diabetes, various types of cancer, and cardiovascular disease. But although the number of obese people is increasing worldwide, there is currently no therapy that simply and effectively supports people in losing weight in the long term.
Burn fat pads
That could change: Researchers led by Prof. Alexander Pfeifer from the Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Bonn have discovered a switch in the fat cells of mice and humans that converts unwanted white fat cells into energy-burning brown cells if it is not activated.
The scientists had observed that there are a particularly large number of switches in brown fat cells that couple to the so-called Gq protein, which is an important messenger substance. When the scientists activated the protein in the adipose tissue obtained from mice, the number of brown cells decreased and their work performance deteriorated. However, if they blocked the protein molecule with an inhibitor, more brown fat cells matured.
Tests on human adipose tissue confirmed that the mechanism could also work in humans: "In human adipose cells, too, it was shown that brown cells were able to develop much better as soon as the Gq proteins were blocked," says Pfeifer.
More brown fat for losing weight
The researchers rate their results as a promising starting point for the development of new active ingredients that stimulate fat burning in obese patients.
Every human body has both types of fat cells - brown and white. While infants still have large amounts of brown adipose tissue, which are supposed to ensure that the tiny ones do not get cold, adults only have a few grams of the brown kilns.
The idea of using these to combat obesity has been a topic of research for some time. A person's energy consumption could thus be effectively increased. So far, this has only been possible with a lot of movement. However, that will still take some time: "So far, there are no drugs that directly convert white into brown fat cells in humans," says Pfeifer. The Gq protein is a possible starting point for the development of such a drug.
Thick Germany
Many people in Germany could also benefit from the transformation from white to brown: Two thirds of men and half of all women in this country are too fat. Most worrying is the speed at which the number of obese people has increased in this country. According to a report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), this still applied to around 20 percent of German citizens over the age of 15 in 2000, but in 2013 the figure was 24 percent.
Source: Katarina Klepac at al .: The Gq signaling pathway inhibits brown and beige adipose tissue; Nature Communications 7, Article number: 10895 doi: 10.1038 / ncomms10895, Published 09 March 2016
