Can Fat Cells Be Taught To Burn Calories?

No.

In the war against obesity, one's own fat cells may seem an unlikely ally, but new research from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) suggests ordinary fat cells can be reengineered to burn calories.

While investigating how a common drug given to people with diabetes works in mice, a UCSF team discovered that a protein called PRDM16, found in both men and mice, can throw a switch on fat cells, converting them from ordinary calorie-storing white fat cells into calorie-burning brown fat cells.

This discovery makes PRDM16 a possible target for future obesity drugs. Compounds that promote the action of this protein may help people burn calories faster. Though they would have to prove safe and effective in the clinic, such compounds would represent a completely different approach to weight loss. Existing diet drugs aim to restrict the intake of calories - by blocking the absorption of fat in the gut, for instance, or by decreasing appetite.

"If you think about the energy balance, the other way to tackle obesity is through energy expenditure," said Shingo Kajimura, PhD, who led the research in the UCSF Diabetes Center and the Department of Cell & Tissue Biology in the UCSF School of Dentistry. The work is published this week in the journal Cell Metabolism.

Just eat fewer Calories than you burn.

Done.

As to whether fat cells can be taught to burn Calorie, just ask these folks: