Some people have "slim genes" in their bodies. Scientists from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom conducted a study on the relationship between weight and genes. They analyzed the DNA of14,000 volunteers of different weights and found that some people would not get fat no matter how they ate, because they had a so-called "slim gene" in their bodies. Related research was recently published in the journal Library of Science-Genetics.
Known as the largest genetic research on thin people in history, the research team recruited some thin but healthy volunteers from all doctors' clinics in Britain, who had no eating disorders. These volunteers must be born slim, so people who exercise more than three times a week are excluded. Most of the people involved in the research are people in their forties. The research team extracted saliva samples from 1622 slim volunteers, sequenced their genes, and then compared them with 1000 middle-weight people and nearly 2000 severely obese people.
As a result of gene comparison, four new gene regions related to slimming were found in this 1622 slim but healthy volunteers. Among them, there are a series of genes that can accelerate people's metabolism or help people burn fat faster. These genes are called "lean genes", and nearly two-thirds of the subjects believe that it is these genes that make them less keen on eating.
Research shows that 65,438+08% of slim figure is determined by DNA. The results show that 65,438+08% slim figure is determined by human DNA, and these healthy thin people are generally slim because of their lower genetic burden, not because they are better at controlling their diet.
Sadafo Farrucci, a professor at Cambridge University who is in charge of the research, said that the research team found that some thinner people are not so interested in eating, but other slim volunteers do like to eat all kinds of delicious food and eat a lot, but they just don't get fat. This proves that some people can really eat whatever they want and keep slim.
A person's body shape can be predicted by genetic risk score. In addition, the researchers also conducted a "risk score" on the genes of the skinny and obese people in the gene bank of the British Biobank, which confirmed the importance of DNA and found that these scores can usually correctly predict a person's body shape.
Tom sanders, emeritus professor of nutrition and nutrition at King's College London, said that this study confirmed that precocity and severe obesity are usually determined by genes, and the genes of thin people are different from those of the general population.
The results of this study will help to develop new drugs that mimic the slim gene? Next, the research team will plan to conduct a separate study to observe what happens to people with slim genes when they eat too much, which may help scientists develop new drugs to imitate the effects of these slim genes and help ordinary people without slim genes lose weight.