Posted on 04/06/2013 9:05:01 PM PDT by neverdem
Researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) have made a discovery in neuroscience that could offer a long-lasting solution to eating disorders such as obesity.
It was previously thought that the nerve cells in the brain associated with appetite regulation were generated entirely during an embryo's development in the womb and therefore their numbers were fixed for life.
But research published today in the Journal of Neuroscience has identified a population of stem cells capable of generating new appetite-regulating neurons in the brains of young and adult rodents.
Obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally. More than 1.4 billion adults worldwide are overweight and more than half a billion are obese. Associated health problems include type 2 diabetes, heart disease, arthritis and cancer. And at least 2.8 million people die each year as a result of being overweight or obese.
The economic burden on the NHS in the UK is estimated to be more than £5 billion annually. In the US, the healthcare cost tops $60 billion.
Scientists at UEA investigated the hypothalamus section of the brain -- which regulates sleep and wake cycles, energy expenditure, appetite, thirst, hormone release and many other critical biological functions. The study looked specifically at the nerve cells that regulate appetite.
The researchers used 'genetic fate mapping' techniques to make their discovery -- a method that tracks the development of stem cells and cells derived from them, at desired time points during the life of an animal.
They established that a population of brain cells called 'tanycytes' behave like stem cells and add new neurons to the appetite-regulating circuitry of the mouse brain after birth and into adulthood.
Lead researcher Dr Mohammad K. Hajihosseini, from UEA's school of Biological Sciences, said: "Unlike dieting, translation of this discovery could eventually offer a permanent solution for...
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
I see East Anglia and I think FRAUD. I stop reading.
"Could eventually" usually means never when it comes to these PR releases.
Did you read the abstract? It's linked at the end of the press release. It mentions leptin and Neuropeptide-Y. The former is involved with satiety, and the latter is involved with food and sleep deprivation.
A few clowns at the University of East Anglia shouldn't tarnish all scientists.
It would have been better if neuroscience had found a lasting cure for neuropathy.
FReepmail me if you want on or off my stem cell/regenerative medicine ping list.
You might have to regrow peripheral nerves that are damaged beyond repair. While this pertains to the central nervous system, they're are constant surprises in science. We don't know what we don't know.
P$: $end grant$....
OTOH, who in human history would have thought we'd ever have a problem with delivering too many calories. The entire history of humanity is one of near starvation and subsistence living. Thank capitalism, free markets and America's century of small government. Yet, you'll not hear a thing about it in any government school, documentary or MSM outlet. Go figure.
appetite control
what could possibly go wrong??
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