The researchers from the USA and Switzerland accelerated the change by adding a protein called leptin to the cells. Rats that received the treatment lost weight sharply without any visible side effects
Scientists used methods of gene therapy (gene therapy) to turn fat-storing cells into fat-burning cells. They hope that the findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in Bethune, may one day lead to new treatments for the obesity epidemic.
The researchers from the USA and Switzerland accelerated the change by adding a protein called leptin to the cells. Rats that received the treatment lost weight sharply without any visible side effects. Some doctors have used leptin injections to treat people prone to obesity. However, the work is still in the experimental phase.
The new research raises hopes that leptin treatments will eventually become accepted treatments. The researchers focus on rats that are prone to diabetes. They injected mice with a virus that includes the gene that codes for leptin. The rats lost their weight from an average of 280 grams to 207 grams in 14 days. They also ate 30 percent less but remained healthy and active.
energy centers
A microscopic analysis of fat cells in the rats' bodies found that the cells shrank and developed more energy centers - mitochondria. In addition, the level of enzymes known as metabolism promoters, especially in fats, increased while the level of those that increase the level of fat decreased.
The rats showed no signs of side effects associated with fat loss, such as that caused by starvation or insulin deficiency, such as loss of body mass that is not fat, hunger and the build-up of toxic derivatives called ketones in the blood.
The researchers also found that when they forced the rats to eat, those who received the leptin gene gained weight more slowly. The holes said that more work is needed to uncover the exact mechanisms behind the changes. However, they say the result may have important implications for obesity treatments in humans.
In the article, the researchers wrote: "The fat loss achieved here was faster than can be attributed only to a reduction in the amount of calories consumed by the rats."
Lead researcher Dr. Richard Unger, director of the Touchstone Center for Diabetes Research at Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, said: "The structure of the cells changed from a normal appearance of fat to a new type of cell that we've never seen before. There is no precedent for a cell that looks like this."
Leptin is normally produced by fat cells, adipocytes, but somehow it is prevented from interfering with the fat storage process. The scientists believe that this is to ensure the vital function of the fat cells in storing the fat to use it as fuel for the body during a period of food shortage.
Dr. Andrew Hill, chairman of the Society for Obesity Research, told the BBC that there have already been studies whose results have promised quick treatment for obesity, but for most people the best solution is to work hard and maintain a low weight throughout their lives.
