(Press-News.org) Contact information: Martin Fussenegger
martin.fussenegger@bsse.ethz.ch
41-613-873-160
ETH Zurich
Implantable slimming aid
Gene network regulates blood-fat levels
Humankind has a weight problem – and not only in the industrialised nations, either: the growing prosperity in many Asian or Latin American countries goes hand in hand with a way of life that quite literally has hefty consequences. Ac-cording to the WHO, over half the population in many industrialised nations is overweight, one in three people extremely so. Not only is high-calorie and fatty food a lifetime on the hips, backside and stomach; it also leaves traces in the blood, where various fats ingested via food circulate. Increased blood-fat values are also regarded as a risk factor for heart attacks and strokes.
Genetic regulatory circuit monitors blood fat
The research group headed by ETH-Zurich professor Martin Fussenegger from the Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering in Basel has now de-veloped an early warning system and treatment: an implantable genetic circuit mainly composed of human gene components. On the one hand, it constantly monitors the circulating fat levels in the blood. On the other hand, it has a feed-back function and forms a messenger substance in response to excessively high blood-fat levels that conveys a sense of satiety to the body.
In order to construct this highly complex regulatory circuit, the biotechnologists skilfully combined different genes that produce particular proteins and reaction steps. They implanted the construct in human cells, which they then inserted into tiny capsules.
The researchers studied obese mice that had been fed fatty food. After the cap-sules with the gene regulatory circuit had been implanted in the animals and intervened due to the excessive levels, the obese mice stopped eating and their bodyweight dropped noticeably as a result. As the blood-fat levels also returned to normal, the regulatory circuit stopped producing the satiety signal.
"The mice lost weight although we kept giving them as much high-calorie food as they could eat," stresses Fussenegger. The animals ate less because the implant signalised a feeling of satiety to them. Mice that received normal animal feed with a five-per-cent fat content did not lose any weight or reduce their intake of food, says the biotechnologist.
Sensor for different dietary fats
One major advantage of the new synthetic regulatory circuit is the fact that it is not only able to measure one sort of fat, but rather several saturated and un-saturated animal and vegetable fats that are ingested with food at once. How-ever, this development cannot simply be transferred to humans. It will take many years to develop a suitable product. Nonetheless, Fussenegger can certainly envisage that one day obese people with a body mass index of way over thirty could have such a gene network implanted to help them lose weight. Fussenegger sees the development as a possible alternative to surgical inter-ventions such as liposuction or gastric bands. "The advantage of our implant would be that it can be used without such invasive interventions." Another merit: instead of intervening in the progression of a disease that is difficult to regulate, it has a preventive effect and exploits the natural human satiety mechanism.
This gene network is one of the most complex that Fussenegger and his team have constructed to date and was made possible thanks to the biotechnologist's years of experience in the field. It is not the first time he and his team have suc-ceeded in constructing such a complex feedback regulatory circuit: a number of years ago, they produced an implant that can also be used to combat gout via a feedback regulatory circuit.
INFORMATION:
Further reading:
Rössger K, Charpin-El-Hamri G, Fussenegger M. A closed-loop synthetic gene circuit for the treatment of diet-induced obesity in mice. Nature Communications, published online 26th November 2013. DOI: 10.1038/ncomms3825
Implantable slimming aid
Gene network regulates blood-fat levels
2013-11-26
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Seahorse heads have a 'no wake zone' that's made for catching prey
2013-11-26
Seahorse heads have a 'no wake zone' that's made for catching prey
A gene mutation for excessive alcohol drinking found
2013-11-26
A gene mutation for excessive alcohol drinking found
UK researchers have discovered a gene that regulates alcohol consumption and when faulty can cause excessive drinking. They have also identified the mechanism underlying this phenomenon.
The study showed ...
Protective effects of dl-3n-butylphthalide against diffuse brain injury
2013-11-26
Protective effects of dl-3n-butylphthalide against diffuse brain injury
Dl-3n-butylphthalide can effectively treat cerebral ischemia; however, the mechanisms underlying the effects of dl-3n-butylphthalide on microcirculation disorders following diffuse brain injury ...
Why do stroke patients show poor limb motor function recovery?
2013-11-26
Why do stroke patients show poor limb motor function recovery?
Negative motor evoked potentials after cerebral infarction, indicative of poor recovery of limb motor function, tend to be accompanied by changes in fractional anisotropy values and the cerebral peduncle ...
An abnormal resting-state functional brain network indicates progression towards AD
2013-11-26
An abnormal resting-state functional brain network indicates progression towards AD
Although we know that mild cognitive impairment is a transitional stage between normal aging and Alzheimer's disease, changes in brain networks during this transformation have ...
Flower power
2013-11-26
Flower power
Researchers breed new varieties of chamomile
Chamomile is a medicinal plant used mainly in the treatment of stomach and intestinal diseases, including the field of veterinary medicine. Agricultural scientist Bettina ...
Researchers have a nose for how probiotics could affect hay fever
2013-11-26
Researchers have a nose for how probiotics could affect hay fever
A study has shown that a daily probiotic drink changed how cells lining the nasal passages of hay fever sufferers reacted to a single out-of-season challenge. However, it did not ...
VTT introduces deforestation monitoring method for tropical regions
2013-11-26
VTT introduces deforestation monitoring method for tropical regions
Halting deforestation in tropical regions requires verification of forest conditions. VTT has developed a new satellite image based method for accurate assessment of tropical ...
New technique for testing drugs to treat cystic fibrosis and epilepsy
2013-11-26
New technique for testing drugs to treat cystic fibrosis and epilepsy
Researchers from the University of Southampton, in collaboration with researchers at the University of Quebec at Montreal, have developed a new microsystem for more efficient testing of ...
No qualms about quantum theory
2013-11-26
No qualms about quantum theory
Study sets out to demystify a selected set of objections targeted against quantum theory in the literature
A colloquium paper published in EPJ D looks into the alleged issues associated with quantum theory. Berthold-Georg Englert ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Drones reveal extreme coral mortality after bleaching
New genetic finding uncovers hidden cause of arsenic resistance in acute promyelocytic leukemia
Native habitats hold the key to the much-loved smashed avocado’s future
Using lightning to make ammonia out of thin air
Machine learning potential-driven insights into pH-dependent CO₂ reduction
Physician associates provide safe care for diagnosed patients when directly supervised by a doctor
How game-play with robots can bring out their human side
Asthma: patient expectations influence the course of the disease
UNM physician tests drug that causes nerve tissue to emit light, enabling faster, safer surgery
New study identifies EMP1 as a key driver of pancreatic cancer progression and poor prognosis
XPR1 identified as a key regulator of ovarian cancer growth through autophagy and immune evasion
Flexible, eco-friendly electronic plastic for wearable tech, sensors
Can the Large Hadron Collider snap string theory?
Stuckeman professor’s new book explores ‘socially sustainable’ architecture
Synthetic DNA nanoparticles for gene therapy
New model to find treatments for an aggressive blood cancer
Special issue of Journal of Intensive Medicine analyzes non-invasive respiratory support
T cells take aim at Chikungunya virus
Gantangqing site in southwest China yields 300,000-year-old wooden tools
Forests can’t keep up: Adaptation will lag behind climate change
Sturgeon reintroduction initiative yields promising first-year survival rate
Study: Babies’ poor vision may help organize visual brain pathways
Research reveals Arctic region was permafrost-free when global temperatures were 4.5˚ C higher than today
Novel insights into chromophobe renal cell carcinoma biology and potential therapeutic strategies
A breakthrough in motor safety: AI-powered warning system enhances capability to uncover hidden winding faults
Research teases apart competing transcription organization models
Connect or reject: Extensive rewiring builds binocular vision in the brain
Benefits and risks: informal use of antibiotics to prevent sexually transmitted infections on the rise in key populations in the Netherlands
New molecular tool sheds light on how cancer cells repair telomeres
First large-scale stem cell bank enables worldwide studies on genetic risk for Alzheimer’s disease
[Press-News.org] Implantable slimming aidGene network regulates blood-fat levels