Brown fat

Scientists investigating the way a certain type of fat behaves in response to cold have made a discovery that could have ramifications for cancer treatment, showing how tumor cells can be starved of a vital fuel source they need to thrive.

Researchers continue to unravel the complex role inflammation plays in obesity, now demonstrating how cold temperatures can stimulate the release of a molecule that reverses this type of inflammation and reduces body weight in mice.

Next-generation therapies that fight obesity could come in many forms, but one example from Nanyang Technological University that uses a unique combination of light and metabolic function to break down fat has some unique advantages.

A new study has revealed a novel signaling pathway through which bad fats are converted into healthier forms, opening up a new possibilities around weight loss and the improvement of metabolic health.

Research has found a common pesticide may promote obesity by slowing the calorie-burning ability of certain fat cells. The animal study indicates chlorpyrifos, to be banned in the US, promotes food intake and suppresses thermogenesis in brown fat.

Scientists in the US investigating the biological mechanisms behind fat burning have identified a protein that plays a key role in regulating metabolism, and demonstrated how blocking its activity can boost the process in mice.

Researchers have uncovered interesting new details around the function of fat cells, finding that increasing levels of a certain protein could offer protection against diabetes in at-risk individuals, by altering the behavior of white fat cells.

Researchers have discovered a new method to treat obesity by blocking a receptor in fat cells and speeding up energy expenditure. An experimental drug has been developed targeting this receptor and it has been effective at preventing obesity in mice.

Much research into obesity of late has focused on ways they body might be made to produce more brown fat rather than white as a way of fighting weight gain, and scientists have now made a key advance in this area.

A new study has affirmed the link between the presence of brown fat and improved cardiac or metabolic health, validating the relatively new hypothesis that the type of adipose tissue commonly referred to as brown fat confers broad health benefits.

Scientists have shown how to activate energy-burning brown fat in mice, which helps shed weight and improves health. Results have been hard to replicate in humans, but a new study has found that we might be targeting the wrong receptor in our bodies.

By triggering receptors on a fast-burning form of fat, researchers were able to give older mice less fat and more muscle, making them as healthy as much younger mice. And better yet, humans seem to have a similar pathway.