Scientists at Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine have just published a paper which has revealed some very interesting facts that could potentially lead to a ground-breaking treatment for obesity. The research team carried out experiments on mice by disrupting an enzyme which is involved in the metabolism of amino acids. This led to continuous cycle of protein synthesis and breakdown, which is believed to have been caused by the elevated blood levels of an amino acid called leucine.
The mice which lacked the enzyme BCATm saw a ten fold rise in blood leucine. As a result of the enzyme deficiency, the mice ate more food than normal mice but were slimmer. This was deduced to have been caused by the energy drain caused by the protein turnover.
It would not be possible to get this effect simply by introducing dietary leucine as this stimulates protein synthesis but disrupts the breakdown. Any solution for humans would have to be via a pharmacological product which would be able to manipulate the activity of the BCATm enzyme. This truly would be the wonder pill that dieters have been looking for as it would mean that they could eat to their heart’s content and burn off all the energy through an increased metabolism. Any potential solution in this field is decades away however!