Scientists have accidentally found a way to create a pill that would let you eat large amounts of fat without gaining weight. The team at Yale University were trying to raise some obese mice. However, in doing so they edited out two genes—which, in turn, appeared to protect the mice from weight gain, despite living on a high-fat diet. The team, led by professor Anne Eichmann and scientist Feng Zang, had made many changes to the genetic make-up of their lab mice to make them pile on pounds.
But as the weeks went by and the rodents stayed slim, they decided to pause and investigate. They found that two genes in particular had caused a unique change in the body: it had flattened certain portals. These portals act as the gateway for fatty acids to either move into the blood stream for energy, or be stored as fat.
The “failure”, reported in the latest edition of the journal Science, paved the way to an entirely different prospect: could the same be done in humans? While they have so far only tested this on mice, the researchers believe they may be able to get the same effect in humans, to block fat from being absorbed into the body.
As it happens, they found, there is a drug that performs that purpose. It already exists, and it is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat glaucoma, the leading cause of blindness.
The drug takes in a set of molecules that hold the strings for the lacteals. Dr Eichmann said the next step could be to monitor patients who use this drug, to see how it impacts the weight gain in humans.
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