Exciting News: The Button Found to Prevent Weight Gain

Scientists at Monash University in Australia have discovered a molecular button in the brain responsible for regulating fat burning, which could possibly prevent weight gain after dieting. Another implication of this discovery is the potential to prevent type 2 diabetes.

The research team identified a switch that controls the human body's ability to store fat, particularly after periods of weight loss or hunger experienced post-dieting, which in most cases leads to renewed weight gain. Controlling this switch could be used to treat obesity and other metabolic disorders in the body.

In an article published in the scientific magazine Cell Reports, the researchers explained that when we experience hunger or diet, our bodies burn fat to provide the necessary energy. However, alongside this process, our brain fights to conserve energy for the future, which is why as soon as food becomes available again, the body replaces fat burning with fat storage.

The researchers also discovered the protein Crat and developed a genetically modified lab mouse model in which the switch was turned off. When these lab mice were fed or when they fasted, their fat reserves were burned at a higher than normal rate.

According to Professor Andrews, one of the research team leaders, weight gain during repeated diets may occur because the brain interprets dieting as starvation, prompting the body to store more fat for future starvation periods. Therefore, "manipulating this protein offers us an opportunity to trick the brain and not replace weight loss with increased appetite and fat storage. Controlling the protein will allow us to ensure that weight loss from dieting is maintained and not regained," he explained.