Protein in abdominal fat could help shape obesity treatment

Keystone

Newly identified cells in abdominal fat inhibit the formation of new fat cells. This discovery could be valuable for the treatment of obesity, as a Swiss research team wrote in a study published in the journal Cell Metabolism. 

The cell population in abdominal fat identified by the researchers led by Bart Deplancke from 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. 

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 researchers, when it expands, it does so mainly by enlarging existing cells. 

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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 storage areas. They isolated different subpopulations and tested their ability to transform into new fat cells. The cells came from over 30 donors. 

By analysing these cells at a 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 an inbuilt 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. 

Adapted from German by DeepL/kc

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