We understand that exercise is good for our health, but we still have a lot to learn about the complex and diverse ways in which physical activity can have positive consequences for human health. Scientists digging into the details of the molecule in this relationship have identified and made important discoveries of modified amino acids that spike into the blood after strenuous exercise and move to the brain to suppress hunger and promote weight loss. I did.
“We all generally recognize that exercise is beneficial, which is good for weight and glucose control,” said Jonathan Long, an assistant professor of pathology at Stanford University, who led the study. , We wanted to explore the concept in more detail. We wanted to see if we could analyze motion in terms of molecules and pathways. “
To this end, long-time fellow research authors at the University of California, Davis and Baylor College of Medicine turned to a technique called metabolomics. This meant using mass spectrometry to track the concentration of various molecules in tissues and blood samples, and how exercise raises or lowers the levels of certain molecules.
Initially, it was used in mice designed to perform short sessions on a treadmill, allowing scientists to identify large spikes in certain molecules after training. Blood analysis from racehorses was then performed and the team revisited the same mysterious molecular spikes after exercise.
“I remember seeing it and thinking,’OK, there’s something here right now,'” Long said.
The team then took advantage of another study being conducted at Stanford University. In this study, geneticists measured the increase in various human molecules during and after exercise. These results not only revealed spikes in the same molecule, but the team decomposed its chemical formula to show that it is a hybrid of two naturally occurring compounds, lactic acid and phenylalanine.
Lactic acid creates a burning sensation until we exhaust our muscles, while phenylalanine is an animoic acid that functions as a component of protein. Together they form a molecule that scientists call lac-phe. It was further investigated that this is catalyzed by a protein called CNDP2, which is highly active in immune cells. Mice lacking this protein were unable to produce lac-phe, so they ate more and gained weight than controls with normal CNDP2 activity.
In another series of experiments, scientists administered the lac-phe molecule to a group of obese mice. This reduced food intake by about 30%, reduced weight, reduced fat, and improved glucose tolerance. This “indicates the recovery of diabetes,” Long says.
“We thought,’Wow, all this evidence really suggests that lac-phe goes to the brain to suppress feeding,'” he said.
Findings are important to understand how exercise mediates hunger levels and can bring subtle and indirect weight loss benefits, not just burning calories, but scientists. Emphasizes that it is in the early stages of research. Converting this finding into a kind of appetite-inhibiting “diet pill” is a long way to go, as it better understands how lac-phe suppresses hunger signals and promotes this effect in the brain. It starts with identifying the receptors for.
“Regular exercise has proven to help with weight loss, appetite regulation, and improved metabolic profile, especially for people who are overweight or obese,” said Dr. Yong Xu, co-author of Baylor College of Medicine. increase. “Understanding the mechanisms by which exercise causes these benefits will help many people improve their health.”
The study was published in the journal Nature, You can hear from some researchers in the video below..
Exercise induces appetite-suppressing molecules | Lisa Kim and 90 seconds
Source: Stanford University, Baylor College of Medicine
