Scientists claim to have found a solution for obesity using gene-manipulation

Sputnik
Fri, 21 Aug 2015 14:00 UTC

© AP Photo/ Mark Lennihan

Scientists in the United States think they may have discovered a cure for obesity in a minor DNA tweak that causes the metabolism to burn up excess fat.

While overeating and lack of exercise were long thought to be the main contributors to weight gain, researchers now believe that genetics play a crucial role in whether fat is stored or used up as energy.

Scientists at Harvard and MIT have discovered that the FTO gene, the so-called "obesity gene," activates two other genes that halt thermogenesis, or burning off energy. But researchers used a groundbreaking gene-manipulation technique to reverse that process, allowing energy to be burned off rather than stored as fat.

The study creates hope that a drug or treatment for obesity could one day be developed.

"Obesity has traditionally been seen as the result of an imbalance between the amount of food we eat and how much we exercise, but this view ignores the contribution of genetics to each individual's metabolism," said MIT professor and senior author Manolis Kellis.

"Knowing the causal variant underlying the obesity association may allow genome editing as a therapeutic avenue for individuals as risk. By manipulating this new pathway, we could switch between energy storage and energy dissipation providing new hope for a cure against obesity."

Obesity affects more than 500 million people worldwide and contributes to a host of diseases. In the United States, about one-third of adults are obese and another one-third are more modestly overweight.

Comment: So now not only is the obesity epidemic a result of people's inability to control their appetite and unwillingness to perform ungodly amounts of physical activity, but now it's also due to people's 'bad genes'. Never mind that mainstream academia has been force feeding people diet information that is based on lies for decades. Just blame it on the victims and their genes and use that framework to develop a vaccine or pharmaceutical 'treatment' that will be less effective than going low-carb, lifting heavy things, getting a good night's sleep, and avoiding toxic chemicals.