British media: scientists found that weight-loss protein can treat obesity

The researchers found a protein that allegedly controls the way the body produces fat cells, according to the state-run foreign media The protein, called THY1, plays an important role in controlling whether primitive cells choose to become fat cells Experts say it can be used to treat obesity According to the Daily Mail website on December 27, about 60 million people in the United States have been diagnosed with clinical obesity Obesity related diseases include type 2 diabetes, various heart diseases, and certain types of cancer According to the World Health Organization, the number of obesity cases in the world has almost doubled since 1980 The researchers say obesity cases are increasing fastest in parts of Asia, Latin America and the Middle East "We don't think weight gain is just a result of eating more and exercising less," said Richard Phelps of the University of Rochester The focus of our research is on the complex networks involved in adipocyte growth " According to a research report published online this month in the Journal of the American Federation of experimental biology, a team at the University of Rochester found that a protein called THY1 plays an important role in controlling whether primitive cells choose to become fat cells, which makes THY1 a possible therapeutic target For the first time, Phelps' laboratory reported that the expression of THY1 disappeared during adipogenesis, indicating that the treatment of obesity can be achieved by repairing THY1 They are also working on an anti obesity drug and have applied for an international patent to protect the invention The researchers studied mouse and human cell lines to confirm that the loss of THY1 function led to the formation of more adipocytes Compared with the normal mice in the control group who also ate high-fat food, the mice without Ty1 protein gained more weight and faster after eating high-fat food "Our goal is to prevent or reduce obesity, and in this study, we show in principle how to do that," Phelps said Experiments using human adipose tissue from the abdomen and eyes showed similar results.