Scientists Say They Have Figured Out How Key Gene Tied To Obesity Makes People Fat

The AP (8/20, Marchione) reports that in a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, scientists claim to “have finally figured out how” FTO, “the key gene tied to obesity, makes people fat, a major discovery that could open the door to an entirely new approach to the problem beyond diet and exercise.” Working with genetically engineered mice and with human cells, researchers found that “a faulty version” of the FTO gene “causes energy from food to be stored as fat rather than burned.”

        TIME (8/20, Park) reports that “by manipulating the genes in question in mice,” investigators discovered that “they could adjust the amount of obesity or leanness by reformulating the proportions of white and beige fat cells.” They found they could even “reduce the amount of white fat by a factor of seven, give or take.” The study authors’ “next step will be to manipulate these genes and this pathway in human patients...to see if the intervention has an effect on their weight and fat composition.” The Telegraph (UK) (8/20, Knapton) also covers the story.