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Survival Gene Turns Our Body Into Super-charged Fat Storage Machines
April 29, 2010: 0 comment(s)
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For most of earth’s history if you were an Egyptian, Roman, Greek or Chinese the problem was always having enough food. Famines were common and food was not waiting at the grocery store or fast food outlet to be served when you drove up. Scientists have discovered a survival gene that ensured fat could be stored in times of plenty in order to survive when food was scarce. That same survival gene, however, according to researchers can make you fat if you regularly eat a diet high in fat or sugar like the standard American diet most of us eat.
The gene, called the kappa opioid receptor, is stimulated when exposed to foods high in fat or sugar and tells our body to store more fat than it normally would. Lead scientist, Traci Ann Czyzyk-Morgan stated, “the data presented here support the hypothesis that overactivation of kappa opioid receptors contribute to the development of obesity specifically during prolonged consumption of high-fat, calorically dense diets.”
Researchers discovered this when they tested two groups of mice. One group had the kappa gene disabled so that could not work making it impossible to store fat. In the control group the kappa gene was intact and functioning so fat could be stored. Both groups were fed a diet high in fat and sugar and energy dense similar to a standard American diet of a hamburger with fries and a soft drink. At he end of 16 weeks the control group with the functioning kappa gene had gained significant weight and fat mass on this diet. The test group with the disabled kappa gene fed the same diet remained lean and had gained no weight or fat.
Scientists believe the energy rich high fat, high sugar diet turns on the kappa gene which then triggers a series of metabolic events causing fat in the diet to be stored and the sugar transformed into fat so it can be stored as well. The high fat, high sugar diet in effect turns our body into a super charged fat storing machine.
“In times when food was scarce and starvation was an ever-present threat, an adaptation that allows our bodies to store as much energy as possible during plentiful times was probably a lifesaver,” said Gerald Weissmann, M.D. Editor-in-Chief of the FASEB Journal. “By taking that opioid off the table, researchers may have found a way to keep us from eating ourselves to death.”
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