Northerner
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- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Joslin scientists have discovered a mechanism that regulates the production of brown fat, a type of fat which plays an important role in heat production and energy metabolism. The findings, which appear in the current issue of Nature, may lead to new therapies that increase BAT formation to treat obesity.
Two types of fat tissue are present in humans and other mammals: white adipose tissue (WAT) or white fat, which stores fat; and brown adipose tissue (BAT) or brown fat, which burns fat to produce heat. Brown fat also metabolizes glucose and fatty acids which is important in diabetes and metabolic diseases. Studies suggest that brown fat provides a natural defense against obesity: people with greater quantities of brown fat have lower body weights. This has made brown fat the focus of considerable interest among scientists and pharmaceutical companies looking for ways to treat obesity.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130313160754.htm
Two types of fat tissue are present in humans and other mammals: white adipose tissue (WAT) or white fat, which stores fat; and brown adipose tissue (BAT) or brown fat, which burns fat to produce heat. Brown fat also metabolizes glucose and fatty acids which is important in diabetes and metabolic diseases. Studies suggest that brown fat provides a natural defense against obesity: people with greater quantities of brown fat have lower body weights. This has made brown fat the focus of considerable interest among scientists and pharmaceutical companies looking for ways to treat obesity.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130313160754.htm