A Japanese research team has found protein variants that increase during exercise and help burn fat, possibly opening a path to developing a new drug that helps people lose weight without dieting.
The team’s findings, published in the European scientific journal Molecular Metabolism, showed that different versions of the PGC-1a protein are produced in skeletal muscle when people exercise, and the larger the increase, the more energy people spend.
“An increase in PGC-1a expression, attributable mostly to upregulation of alternative variants, is pivotal for adaptive enhancement of energy expenditure,” said the team, comprising researchers from Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine and other institutions.
File photo taken in August 2013 shows runners jogging around the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. (Kyodo)
The team found that mice lacking these variants “manifest impaired energy expenditure during exercise, leading to the development of obesity and hyperinsulinemia.”
When the team examined skeletal muscle in humans, alternative PGC-1a variants also increased during exercise. It said production of the variants differ by individual, leading to a gap in weight loss even when people do the same exercise.
While drugs that suppress appetite are often prescribed in treating obesity, the latest findings could lead to new drugs that induce or increase those variants independently of exercise.
“Obesity-linked illnesses are a significant healthcare target, and if new drugs can eliminate obesity, it could help treat various diseases,” said Wataru Ogawa, a Kobe University professor on the team.
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