Endocrinology: it is found that a single molecule can regulate fat storage, and the treatment of obesity is just around the corner

September 22, 2019 / BIOON / - a single cholesterol derived molecule, called 27 hydroxycholesterol (27HC), lurks in your blood and increases your body fat, even if you don't eat a diet rich in red meat and fried food However, this diet increases 27 HC levels and weight Michihisa umetani, assistant professor of biology at the University of Houston, wrote in the journal endocrinology: "we found that 27HC directly affects white adipose tissue and increases body fat, even if you don't eat foods that increase body fat "The first author of this paper, Dr ARVAN D asghari, added:" but it does need some material from the diet to help it gain weight because it increases the volume of fat in the body "Image source: the long-term use of these findings by the University of Houston may lead researchers to find a treatment that reduces 27HC levels, which may reduce their ability to make fat Umetani's lab, part of the University of Houston's (Uh) nuclear receptor and cell signaling center, said: "we hope to develop a new treatment that regulates 27HC levels to treat cholesterol and / or estrogen receptor-mediated diseases such as cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, cancer and metabolic diseases "Prior to this study, 27HC was considered a rich cholesterol metabolite, and umetani's team has reported its harmful effects on the cardiovascular system, but its effects on obesity are not known The role of estrogen receptor obesity is one of the main risk factors of cardiovascular disease in men and women around the world, estrogen plays a role in both sexes Menopause in women, along with the decrease of estrogen, seems to accelerate the increase of adipose tissue, because estrogen can prevent obesity and weight gain In men, estrogen is also synthesized through the local transformation of testosterone, so they may also play an important role in the development of male adipose tissue "Estrogen receptors (ER α and ER β) are members of the nuclear receptor superfamily that occur in adipocytes," umetani said "People with nonfunctional Er α are obese, and those who do not have Er α also increase their adipose tissue when they eat the same food, which indicates that ER α plays an important role in regulating adipose tissue "The primary function of 27HC in the liver is to reduce excess cholesterol Previously, umetani found that 27HC binds to estrogen receptor and acts as an inhibitor of ER action in the vascular system The results showed that the effect of 27HC was tissue-specific, so 27HC was the first naturally produced selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) Reference materials: ARVAN asghari et al 27 hydroxyholesterol promotes adaptability and MICs adaptive diet induced infrastructure signaling, Endocrinology (2019) Doi: 10.1210/en.2019-00349