Scientists discover method of tricking body into burning calories by removing one gene

A team of scientists have found removing just one gene from fat tissue can trick the body into speeding up its metabolism and burning more calories without the need for regular dieting.

The study focused on a protein called PHD2 which is found at high levels in brown adipose tissue, a type of body fat that is activated in cold temperatures to help keep us warm.

This helps the body to burn calories by breaking down blood sugar and fat molecules to create heat.

The study stemmed from the thinking that people often lose weight and have a faster metabolic rate at higher altitudes, where it is cooler and there is low oxygen.

The team, led by scientists at Nottingham Trent University and the University of Edinburgh, hope this could help protect against metabolic diseases that often come with obesity, such as type 2 diabetes.

Dr Zoi Michailidou, the lead author of the study and a researcher in Nottingham Trent University's School of Science and Technology, said: "By removing a protein that lets fat cells sense oxygen, we have been able to show that calorie burning could happen in mice and human cells even when they are not exposed to cold temperatures.

"Reducing this protein's effect may break the link between being overweight and type 2 diabetes, meaning our findings could be important for people with an increased risk of this disease.

"Although it is early days and more research is required in people, targeting this key protein could open up new strategies to sustain weight loss by increasing metabolism and without the need for continuous dieting."

The team of scientists hope the study can lead to help protecting people from metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes /

PHD2 works as an oxygen sensor and plays an important role in the regulation of brown fat.

By removing the gene in the brown fat of mice, the research team was able to mimic the high-altitude effect on fat in a warm environment, conditions in which brown fat is usually suppressed.

Despite eating significantly more, the study showed mice without the gene burned predominantly more fat and 60 per cent more calories than mice with the gene.

The team also analysed blood samples from more than 5,000 participants and found levels of PHD2 were higher in those who carried more fat around their stomach and the gene was associated with an increased risk of metabolic disease.

The team claims inhibiting this gene could help protect the body from type 2 diabetes and other metabolic disorders.

The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.

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