AsianScientist (Jan. 15, 2014) – As most people resolve themselves to lose weight this New Year, here’s why it seems to get easier and easier to pack on unwanted pounds: research published in The FASEB Journal shows that as we age, the thermogenic activity of brown fat is reduced.
Brown fat is a “good” fat located in the backs of our necks that helps burn “bad” white fat around our bellies. Additionally, the researchers also discovered a possible metabolic on/off switch that could reactivate brown fat.
“Future studies on how PAF/PAFR signaling controls UCP1 levels through beta3-AR production in the BAT of animals and humans may reveal new therapeutic targets to treat metabolic disorders associated with obesity,” said Junko Sugatani, a co-author on the study from the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Shizuoka in Shizuoka, Japan.
To make this discovery, scientists analyzed two groups of mice. The first group had the platelet-activating factor receptors (PAFR) gene knocked out. The second group was normal. PAFR-deficient mice developed a more severe obese state characterized by higher body and epididymal fat mass with age than that of wild-type littermates.
Findings from the PAFR-KO genetic model reveal that PAFR-deficiency causes brown adipose tissue (BAT) dysfunction, which converges to induce the development of obesity, due to impaired thermogenic activity of BAT. This study could explain the molecular mechanism underlying the PAF/PAF receptor-mediated anti-obesity, leading to the development of new targets for the treatment of obesity and related disorders, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, cancer, infertility and ulcers.
The article can be found at: Sugatani J et al. (2014) Antiobese function of platelet-activating factor: increased adiposity in platelet-activating factor receptor-deficient mice with age.
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Source: Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology; Photo: A m o r e Caterina/Flickr/CC.
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