Metabolism News and Research

Latest Metabolism News and Research

Senescent cells in the brain shown to cause obesity-related anxiety

Researchers have shown that obesity increases the level of semi-dormant senescent cells in the brain, which give rise to anxiety-like behaviors.

3 Jan 2019

Researchers reveal cause of possible genetic problems in mitochondria

A group of researchers from the Andalusian Centre for Molecular Biology and Regenerative Medicine has revealed the importance of eliminating any excess of defective products that might have accumulated in the mitochondria, as its presence generates mitochondrial instability and information loss on the mitochondrial genome.

3 Jan 2019

Researchers launch clinical trial to develop breath test for multiple cancers

Researchers have launched a clinical trial to develop a breath test, analyzing molecules that could indicate the presence of cancer at an early stage.

2 Jan 2019

Scientists cast new light on function of long-mysterious PCSK9 mutation

High levels of low-density lipoproteins, parcels of lipids and protein that carry cholesterol, are a leading risk factor for heart disease. Many cholesterol medications lower LDL, some of them by targeting the protein PCSK9. In the January issue of the Journal of Lipid Research, scientists at the University of California, San Francisco, report on an investigation into why experiments on PCSK9 give different results in a test tube and in liver cells.

2 Jan 2019

Multi-database electronic research finds link between gene polymorphisms with zinc status

Zinc is one of the essential components in the diet of all living organisms. It is the second most abundant biological trace element after iron.

28 Dec 2018

Sleeping sickness parasite exhibits metabolic flexibility and adaptability

Parasitic protozoa called trypanosomes synthesize sugars using an unexpected metabolic pathway called gluconeogenesis, according to a study published December 27 in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens by David Horn of the University of Dundee in the UK, and colleagues.

28 Dec 2018

Reducing alcohol use could help quit daily smoking habit

If quitting smoking is one of your New Year's resolutions, you might want to consider cutting back on your drinking, too.

28 Dec 2018

Study suggests dopamine release in the brain occurs twice per meal

We know a good meal can stimulate the release of the feel-good hormone dopamine, and now a study in humans from the Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research in Germany suggests that dopamine release in the brain occurs at two different times: at the time the food is first ingested and another once the food reaches the stomach.

28 Dec 2018

How physical activity decreases belly fat in humans

Some of you may have made a New Year's resolution to hit the gym to tackle that annoying belly fat. But have you ever wondered how physical activity produces this desired effect? A signaling molecule called interleukin-6 plays a critical role in this process, researchers report December 27 in the journal Cell Metabolism.

28 Dec 2018

Himalayan marmot genome offers clues to high-altitude adaptation

Himalayan marmots can survive at altitudes up to 5,000 meters in the Himalayan regions of India, Nepal, and Pakistan and on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau of China, where many of them face extreme cold, little oxygen, and few other resources.

27 Dec 2018

Targeting thymidylate biosynthesis in kinetoplastid and apicomplexan protozoans

Kinetoplastid and apicomplexan parasites include protozoans which are responsible for human diseases, and cause a serious impact on human health and the socioeconomic growth of developing countries. Chemotherapy is the main option to control these pathogenic organisms.

27 Dec 2018

NIPER researcher presents a review on autophagy in neuronal cells

Autophagy is a cellular degradation process that can cause the death of a cell in certain conditions. Autophagy is necessary to maintain cellular homeostasis by clearing out damaged cellular organelles and proteins through certain pathways.

27 Dec 2018

The role of galanin-like peptide in regulating feeding behavior and energy metabolism

Galanin-like peptide is a short peptide made up of 60 amino acid residues. This sequence is homologous across several species. The hypothalamic arcuate nucleus is the place where GALP is produced. GALP has diverse physiological effects such as the regulation of feeding, energy metabolism, and reproductive behavior.

25 Dec 2018

The impact of maternal diabetes on fetal heart development

Congenital heart disease is the most common birth defect. And even with remarkable advances in care, it remains the leading cause of non-infectious death in infants.

24 Dec 2018

Statins reduce the formation of brown adipose tissue

A certain proportion of the adult population has not only white adipose (or fatty) tissue, but also the brown kind. This brown adipose tissue helps to convert sugar and fat into heat. People with brown adipose tissue are better at regulating their body temperature in the winter, and are less likely to suffer from excess weight or diabetes.

21 Dec 2018

Simple protocol rescues stressed liver cells

Isolated human hepatocytes are essential tools in preclinical and clinical liver research, but cell quality is highly variable. Now, researchers from Uppsala University have devised a simple protocol that improves hepatocyte quality and enables cells from a wider quality spectrum to be used in standard and advanced cell culture. The findings are published in Archives of Toxicology.

21 Dec 2018

New approach to destroy HIV reservoirs

Current HIV treatments need to be taken for life by those infected as antiretroviral therapy is unable to eliminate viral reservoirs lurking in immune cells. Institut Pasteur scientists have identified the characteristics of CD4 T lymphocytes that are preferentially infected by the virus - it is their metabolic (or energy-producing) activity1 that enables the virus to multiply.

21 Dec 2018

New research examines cancer metabolism at multiple scales

No matter what form cancer takes in the body, it starts at the cellular level and grows via metabolism run amok.

21 Dec 2018

Experts in Parkinson's research propose roadmap for drug trials targeting alpha-synuclein

A recently discovered protein, alpha-synuclein, has become one of the most attractive targets for developing new drugs with the potential to slow down or arrest the progression of Parkinson's disease

20 Dec 2018

Experimental gene therapy extends lifespan of mice suffering from untreatable mitochondrial disease

Researchers at the University of Helsinki and Folkhälsan Research Center have, together with their collaborators, for the first time demonstrated in a mouse model that partial restoration of respiratory chain function in mitochondria, which serve as cellular power plants, may be sufficient to entirely prevent symptoms of a severe mitochondrial disorder.

20 Dec 2018