Brown Fat News and Research

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Energy-burning 'good' fat helps reduce weight gain, lower blood glucose levels in mice

Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have developed a novel way to engineer the growth and expansion of energy-burning "good" fat, and then found that this fat helped reduce weight gain and lower blood glucose levels in mice.

20 Aug 2015

WSU research provides new strategies for prevention, treatment of obesity

Washington State University scientists have shown that berries, grapes and other fruits convert excess white fat into calorie-burning "beige" fat, providing new strategies for the prevention and treatment of obesity.

19 Jun 2015

Researchers create cell lines to study gene expression in precursor brown fat and white fat cells

Since the 2009 discovery that energy-burning brown fat can be active in adults, research has raced ahead to understand this tissue and exploit it to treat the epidemic of obesity. Active brown fat also may assist in directly easing the burden of diabetes and related metabolic diseases by lowering the levels of glucose and fatty acids in the bloodstream. But progress in studying human brown fat often has been slowed by difficulties in obtaining and studying samples of the human cells that develop into brown fat.

17 Jun 2015

Scientists isolate energy-burning 'beige' fat from adult humans

For the first time, a research team, led by a UC San Francisco biologist, has isolated energy-burning "beige" fat from adult humans, which is known to be able to convert unhealthy white fat into healthy brown fat. The scientists also found new genetic markers of this beige fat.

1 Apr 2015

Brown fat tissue communicates with the brain through sensory nerves

Brown fat tissue, the body's "good fat," communicates with the brain through sensory nerves, possibly sharing information that is important for fighting human obesity, such as how much fat we have and how much fat we've lost, according to researchers at Georgia State University.

30 Mar 2015

Ember Therapeutics, Mariel Therapeutics sign definitive merger agreement

Ember Therapeutics, Inc., a Boston-based biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery and development of novel obesity and diabetic related therapies, and Mariel Therapeutics, a privately held, New York-based biotechnology company developing targeted therapies for osteoarthritis and kidney fibrosis using Bone Morphogenetic Protein (BMP)-7, jointly announce today that they have entered into a definitive agreement to merge the two companies.

12 Mar 2015

GC-1 experimental drug causes loss of weight and fat in mice

An experimental drug causes loss of weight and fat in mice, a new study has found. The study results will be presented Friday at the Endocrine Society's 97th annual meeting in San Diego.

9 Mar 2015

Plant molecule helps female mice combat weight gain

A molecule found in some plants can combat weight gain induced by a high-fat diet, but only in female mice, not males. 7,8-dihydroxyflavone (7,8-DHF) is thought to mimic the effects of a growth factor induced by exercise.

6 Mar 2015

Chili peppers show promise as diet-based supplement

Don't go chomping on a handful of chili peppers just yet, but there may be help for hopeful dieters in those fiery little Native American fruits.

9 Feb 2015

McMaster University researchers identify hormone that contributes to obesity, diabetes

Researchers from McMaster University have identified an important hormone that is elevated in obese people and contributes to obesity and diabetes by inhibiting brown fat activity.

8 Dec 2014

Scientists discover that brown fat could be used to manage type 2 diabetes

Scientists from Monash University and Stockholm University have discovered that brown fat, nicknamed the 'good fat' because it warms up the body in cold temperatures, burning up calories in the process, also 'hoovers up' excess sugar.

24 Nov 2014

Research finding points to potential new treatment for metabolic disorders

Researchers at the University of Michigan have discovered how a previously unknown hormone serves as a messenger from fat cells to the liver and are investigating the potential of developing a new treatment for metabolic disorders.

17 Nov 2014

Stockholm researchers discover new mechanism that stimulates glucose uptake in brown fat

Research findings that can likely be used to develop a new type of medicine for type 2 diabetes are published today in the Journal of Cell Biology. Researchers at Stockholm University have discovered a new mechanism that stimulates glucose uptake in brown fat - a tissue whose primary function is to generate heat by burning fat and sugar.

11 Nov 2014

Research shows FGF21 hormone acts directly on brain to regulate obesity

A hormone seen as a popular target to develop weight-loss drugs works by directly targeting the brain and triggering previously unknown activity in the nervous system, UT Southwestern Medical Center obesity researchers have found.

24 Oct 2014

Researchers discover new signaling pathway to fight excess body weight

The number of overweight persons is greatly increasing worldwide - and as a result is the risk of suffering a heart attack, stroke, diabetes or Alzheimer's disease.

16 Oct 2014

Notch signaling also plays important role in onset of obesity and Type 2 diabetes

A Purdue University study shows that Notch signaling, a key biological pathway tied to development and cell communication, also plays an important role in the onset of obesity and Type 2 diabetes, a discovery that offers new targets for treatment.

8 Aug 2014

Biologists identify signaling pathway that switches on calorie-burning process in brown fat cells

Biologists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have identified a signaling pathway that switches on a powerful calorie-burning process in brown fat cells.

1 Aug 2014

People with higher levels of brown fat have better blood sugar control

Researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston have shown for the first time that people with higher levels of brown fat, or brown adipose tissue, in their bodies have better blood sugar control, higher insulin sensitivity and a better metabolism for burning fat stores.

24 Jul 2014

Study pinpoints molecular cause of cachexia, hints at a potential treatment

New research raises the prospect of more effective treatments for cachexia, a profound wasting of fat and muscle occurring in about half of all cancer patients, raising their risk of death, according to scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

14 Jul 2014

Transcription factor IRF4 plays key role in brown fat's thermogenic process

The body contains two types of fat cells, easily distinguished by color: White and brown. While white fat serves to store excess calories until they're needed by the body, brown adipocytes actually burn fat by turning it into heat.

4 Jul 2014