Certain cells in abdominal fat inhibit the formation of new fat cells
Published: Friday, May 10th 2024, 12:40
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Newly identified cells in abdominal fat slow down the formation of new fat cells. This discovery could be valuable for the treatment of obesity, as a Lausanne research team wrote in a study in the journal "Cell Metabolism".
The cell population in abdominal fat identified by the researchers led by Bart Deplancke of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) produces a protein called IGFBP2, which inhibits the formation of fat cells, according to the study published on Thursday evening.
Understanding how adipose tissue forms and how it functions is crucial for dealing with obesity and associated metabolic diseases, EPFL wrote in a press release on the study. However, adipose tissue behaves differently depending on where it is located in the body.
The so-called omental adipose tissue, which hangs from the stomach like an apron and covers certain organs such as the stomach and intestines, has a limited capacity to form new fat cells. According to the EPFL, when it expands, it does so mainly by enlarging existing cells.
Mechanism built into abdominal fat
In order to understand more precisely why this is the case, the researchers sequenced the genes of cells from different fat depots. They isolated different subpopulations and tested their ability to transform into new fat cells. The cells came from over 30 donors.
By examining these cells at the genetic level, they were able to find out more precisely how the cells work. They discovered a cell population in omental adipose tissue in which a large amount of the protein IGFBP2 is produced. This protein is known to inhibit the formation of new fat cells.
"The knowledge that abdominal fat has a built-in mechanism to limit fat cell formation could lead to new treatments that modulate this natural process," study author Pernille Rainer was quoted as saying in the EPFL press release.
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