Obesity is a critical condition that increases the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disorders, such as heart attacks and strokes. The pandemic also indicated a link between weight and COVID-19 severity, revealing that people who are overweight or obese are more prone to develop difficulties. Obesity is being researched in a variety of methods, with some medications already showing significant promise. Another way to cure obesity has been discovered through new studies. A group of genes that govern the Hippo signaling system have been revealed to play a direct role in weight gain, according to researchers.
Fruit flies were researched by Cambridge University scientists to see if genetics have a factor in how the body manages and retains weight. Scientists may use the fruit fly to explore genes linked to medical disorders such as obesity. Tests are less expensive and time-consuming than utilizing animals for the same objective.
“Studies of obese individuals have the potential to identify genes that, when mutated, might lead to human obesity. Establishing a functional relationship between these candidate genes and obesity is challenging, however. We were able to assess the function of candidate genes in the humble fruit fly and not only identified four novel obesity genes, but also predicted a fifth, in which rare variants were subsequently found in obese individuals,” declared one of the co-authors.
While performing the tests, researchers can concurrently screen many genes. In the case of weight and health, the flies act similarly to people. When they consume high or high-sugar diets, they put on weight and suffer cardiac issues. Humans have genetics that handle weight in the same way as fruit flies do. This is when the Hippo pathway comes into play. Turning on or increasing the Hippo genes with medicines might have the opposite effect. They may help to minimize fat accumulation, which may lower the risk of obesity.
