SF / 과학 포럼
SF 작품의 가능성은 어떻게 펼쳐질 수 있을까요? 그리고 어떤 상상의 이야기가 가능할까요?
SF에 대한 가벼운 흥미거리에서부터 새로운 창작을 위한 아이디어에 이르기까지...
여기는 과학 소식이나 정보를 소개하고, SF 속의 아이디어나 이론에 대한 의견을 나누며, 상상의 꿈을 키워나가는 곳입니다.
( 이 게시판은 최근에 의견이나 덧글이 추가된 순서대로 정렬됩니다. )
출처: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-01-scientists-brain-hormone-triggers-fat.html
Biologists at The Scripps
Research Institute (TSRI) have identified a brain hormone that appears to
trigger fat burning in the gut. Their findings in animal models could have
implications for future pharmaceutical development.
스크립스연구소(TSRI) 소속 생물학자들이 내장지방 연소를 촉발하는 뇌 호르몬을 발견했다. 동물 실험으로 얻어진 이 발견은 앞으로 관련약품 개발에 영향을 줄 것으로 예상된다.
Previous studies had shown that the neurotransmitter serotonin can drive fat loss. Yet no one was sure exactly how. To answer that question, Srinivasan and her colleagues experimented with roundworms called C. elegans, which are often used as model organisms in biology. These worms have simpler metabolic systems than humans, but their brains produce many of the same signaling molecules, leading many researchers to believe that findings in C. elegans may be relevant for humans.
신경전달물질인 세로토닌이 지방연소를 촉진한다는 사실은 이미 기존 연구에서 밝혀졌으나, 정확히 이게 어떻게 일어나는지는 아무도 몰랐다. 이에 대한 해답을 찾기 위해 TSRI의 조교수인 스리니바산과 그 동료들은 생물학에서 실험모델로 자주 쓰이는 C. elegans라는 회충을 가지고 실험을 진행했다. 이 회충은 인간에 비해 단순한 대사계를 가지고 있으나, 그 뇌에서는 인간과 동일한 다수의 신호분자들이 생성된다. 따라서 많은 과학자들은 C. elegans 실험으로 얻은 결과가 인간한테도 그대로 적용될 수 있다고 확신한다.
The researchers deleted genes in C. elegans to see if they could interrupt the path between brain serotonin and fat burning. By testing one gene after another, they hoped to find the gene without which fat burning wouldn't occur. This process of elimination led them to a gene that codes for a neuropeptide hormone they named FLP-7 (pronounced "flip 7").
연구진은 C.elegans의 유전자를 제거하여 뇌 세로토닌과 지방연소 간의 연결고리를 끊으려 시도했다. 유전자를 하나씩 하나씩 제거해 나가면서 지방연소에 필수적인 유전자를 찾아내려 했던 것이다. 이렇게 유전자를 제거해 나가는 과정에서 연구진은 신경펩티드 호르몬(FLP-7, 또는 플립 7이라 불린다)을 관장하는 유전자를 발견했다.
Interestingly, they found that the mammalian version of FLP-7 (called Tachykinin) had been identified 80 years ago as a peptide that triggered muscle contractions when dribbled on pig intestines.
흥미롭게도 연구진은 FLP-7의 포유류 버전(타키키닌이라 불린다)이 이미 80년 전에 발견되었음을 확인했다. 당시 타키키닌은 돼지 창자에 주입하면 근육 수축을 촉발하는 펩티드로 세상에 알려졌다.
뇌가 음석 섭취를 조절하는 메커니즘
Scientists back then believed this was a hormone that connected the brain to the gut, but no one had linked the neuropeptide to fat metabolism in the time since.
The next step in the new study was to determine if FLP-7 was directly linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Study first author Lavinia Palamiuc, a TSRI research associate, spearheaded this effort by tagging FLP-7 with a fluorescent red protein so that it could be visualized in living animals, possible because the roundworm body is transparent. Her work revealed that FLP-7 was indeed secreted from neurons in the brain in response to elevated serotonin levels. FLP-7 then traveled through the circulatory system to start the fat burning process in the gut.
당시의 과학자들은 타키키닌이 뇌와 내장을 연결하는 호르몬임을 알고 있었으나, 지방 대사와 연관이 있다는 것은 이번 연구에 처음으로 밝혀졌다.
그 다음 단계는 FLP-7이 뇌의 세로토닌 수준과 직접적인 연관이 있는지 여부를 확인하는 것이었다. TSRI의 실험모니터링요원이나 이번 연구논문의 수석저자인 라비니아 팔라미욱은 FLP-7에 빨간색 형광단백질을 부착시켜서 살아있는 생물 안에서도 관찰할 수 있도록 했다. 이는 회충의 몸체가 투명하기 때문에 가능한 일이었다. 실험 결과 뇌의세로토닌 수준이 올라가면 뇌의 신경에서 FLP-7이 분비되는 것으로 밝혀졌다. 신경에서 분비된 FLP-7은 순환계를 타고 이동하여 내장지방 연소를 촉발했다.
"That was a big moment for us," said Srinivasan. For the first time, researchers had found a brain hormone that specifically and selectively stimulates fat metabolism, without any effect on food intake.
"저희에게 이건 매우 중요한 사건이었습니다"라고 TSRI의 조교수인 스리니바산이 말했다. 연구진이 사상 최초로 구체적이고 선택적으로 지방의 대사를 촉진하면서도 음식 섭취에는 아무런 영향을 끼치지 않는 뇌 호르몬을 발견한 것이다.
Altogether, the newly discovered fat-burning pathway works like this: a neural circuit in the brain produces serotonin in response to sensory cues, such as food availability. This signals another set of neurons to begin producing FLP-7. FLP-7 then activates a receptor in intestinal cells, and the intestines begin turning fat into energy.
새로 발견된 이번 지방연소 경로는 다음과 같다:
1) 감각신호(음식의 유무 등)를 받은 뇌의 신경회로에서 세로토닌을 분비한다.
2) 세로토닌 수준이 올라가면 다른 신경세포에서 FLP-7를 분비한다.
3) 신경세포에서 분비된 FLP-7은 창자세포의 수용기를 활성화시킨다.
4) 창자세포들이 지방을 에너지로 변환하기 시작한다.
Next, the researchers investigated the consequences of manipulating FLP-7 levels. While increasing serotonin itself can have a broad impact on an animal's food intake, movement and reproductive behavior, the researchers found that increasing FLP-7 levels farther downstream didn't come with any obvious side effects. The worms continued to function normally while simply burning more fat.
그 다음에 연구진은 FLP-7의 수준을 조절하면 어떤 결과가 나오는지를 실험했다. 세로토닌의 증가는 동물의 음식 섭취와 신체활동, 생식활동 같이 광범위한 부문에 영향을 끼치는 반면, FLP-7의 증가는 아무런 부작용을 불러일으키지 않았다. FLP-7 수준이 높아진 회충들은 평소보다 지방 연소가 늘어난 것 외에는 정상적으로 활동했다.
Srinivasan said this finding
could encourage future studies into how FLP-7 levels could be regulated without
causing the side effects often experienced when manipulating overall serotonin
levels.
스리니바사는 해당 발견이 세로토닌 수준의 조절로 인한 부작용 없이 FLP-7 수준을 조절할 수 있는 방법을 연구하는데에 도움이 될 것으로 예상했다.
More information: Lavinia Palamiuc et al, A tachykinin-like neuroendocrine signalling axis couples central serotonin action and nutrient sensing with peripheral lipid metabolism, Nature Communications (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14237
참고자료: 라비니아 팔라미욱 외, 타키키닌과 유사한 신경내분비 신호축선에 의한, 지엽적 지질대사를 수반하는 중앙 세로토닌 기능과 영양분 감지간 결합, Nature Communications (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14237
...
미래에는 운동하지 않아도 호르몬 주사만으로 내장지방을 뺄 수 있겠군요? ( -_-)a
Previous studies had shown that the neurotransmitter serotonin can drive fat loss. Yet no one was sure exactly how. To answer that question, Srinivasan and her colleagues experimented with roundworms called C. elegans, which are often used as model organisms in biology. These worms have simpler metabolic systems than humans, but their brains produce many of the same signaling molecules, leading many researchers to believe that findings in C. elegans may be relevant for humans.
The researchers deleted genes in C. elegans to see if they could interrupt the path between brain serotonin and fat burning. By testing one gene after another, they hoped to find the gene without which fat burning wouldn't occur. This process of elimination led them to a gene that codes for a neuropeptide hormone they named FLP-7 (pronounced "flip 7").
Interestingly, they found that the mammalian version of FLP-7 (called Tachykinin) had been identified 80 years ago as a peptide that triggered muscle contractions when dribbled on pig intestines.
Scientists back then believed this was a hormone that connected the brain to the gut, but no one had linked the neuropeptide to fat metabolism in the time since.
The next step in the new study was to determine if FLP-7 was directly linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Study first author Lavinia Palamiuc, a TSRI research associate, spearheaded this effort by tagging FLP-7 with a fluorescent red protein so that it could be visualized in living animals, possible because the roundworm body is transparent. Her work revealed that FLP-7 was indeed secreted from neurons in the brain in response to elevated serotonin levels. FLP-7 then traveled through the circulatory system to start the fat burning process in the gut.
"That was a big moment for us," said Srinivasan. For the first time, researchers had found a brain hormone that specifically and selectively stimulates fat metabolism, without any effect on food intake.
Altogether, the newly discovered fat-burning pathway works like this: a neural circuit in the brain produces serotonin in response to sensory cues, such as food availability. This signals another set of neurons to begin producing FLP-7. FLP-7 then activates a receptor in intestinal cells, and the intestines begin turning fat into energy.
Next, the researchers investigated the consequences of manipulating FLP-7 levels. While increasing serotonin itself can have a broad impact on an animal's food intake, movement and reproductive behavior, the researchers found that increasing FLP-7 levels farther downstream didn't come with any obvious side effects. The worms continued to function normally while simply burning more fat.
Srinivasan said this finding could encourage future studies into how FLP-7 levels could be regulated without causing the side effects often experienced when manipulating overall serotonin levels.
Explore further:
Study reveals new link between brain and fat-burning circuit
More information: Lavinia Palamiuc et al, A tachykinin-like neuroendocrine signalling axis couples central serotonin action and nutrient sensing with peripheral lipid metabolism, Nature Communications (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14237
Read more at: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-01-scientists-brain-hormone-triggers-fat.html#jCp
Biologists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have identified a brain hormone that appears to trigger fat burning in the gut. Their findings in animal models could have implications for future pharmaceutical development.
"This was basic science that unlocked an interesting mystery," said TSRI Assistant Professor Supriya Srinivasan, senior author of the new study, published today in the journal Nature Communications.
Previous studies had shown that the neurotransmitter serotonin can drive fat loss. Yet no one was sure exactly how. To answer that question, Srinivasan and her colleagues experimented with roundworms called C. elegans, which are often used as model organisms in biology. These worms have simpler metabolic systems than humans, but their brains produce many of the same signaling molecules, leading many researchers to believe that findings in C. elegans may be relevant for humans.
The researchers deleted genes in C. elegans to see if they could interrupt the path between brain serotonin and fat burning. By testing one gene after another, they hoped to find the gene without which fat burning wouldn't occur. This process of elimination led them to a gene that codes for a neuropeptide hormone they named FLP-7 (pronounced "flip 7").
Interestingly, they found that the mammalian version of FLP-7 (called Tachykinin) had been identified 80 years ago as a peptide that triggered muscle contractions when dribbled on pig intestines.
Scientists back then believed this was a hormone that connected the brain to the gut, but no one had linked the neuropeptide to fat metabolism in the time since.
The next step in the new study was to determine if FLP-7 was directly linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Study first author Lavinia Palamiuc, a TSRI research associate, spearheaded this effort by tagging FLP-7 with a fluorescent red protein so that it could be visualized in living animals, possible because the roundworm body is transparent. Her work revealed that FLP-7 was indeed secreted from neurons in the brain in response to elevated serotonin levels. FLP-7 then traveled through the circulatory system to start the fat burning process in the gut.
"That was a big moment for us," said Srinivasan. For the first time, researchers had found a brain hormone that specifically and selectively stimulates fat metabolism, without any effect on food intake.
Altogether, the newly discovered fat-burning pathway works like this: a neural circuit in the brain produces serotonin in response to sensory cues, such as food availability. This signals another set of neurons to begin producing FLP-7. FLP-7 then activates a receptor in intestinal cells, and the intestines begin turning fat into energy.
Next, the researchers investigated the consequences of manipulating FLP-7 levels. While increasing serotonin itself can have a broad impact on an animal's food intake, movement and reproductive behavior, the researchers found that increasing FLP-7 levels farther downstream didn't come with any obvious side effects. The worms continued to function normally while simply burning more fat.
Srinivasan said this finding could encourage future studies into how FLP-7 levels could be regulated without causing the side effects often experienced when manipulating overall serotonin levels.
Explore further:
Study reveals new link between brain and fat-burning circuit
More information: Lavinia Palamiuc et al, A tachykinin-like neuroendocrine signalling axis couples central serotonin action and nutrient sensing with peripheral lipid metabolism, Nature Communications (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14237
Read more at: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-01-scientists-brain-hormone-triggers-fat.html#jCp
Biologists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have identified a brain hormone that appears to trigger fat burning in the gut. Their findings in animal models could have implications for future pharmaceutical development.
"This was basic science that unlocked an interesting mystery," said TSRI Assistant Professor Supriya Srinivasan, senior author of the new study, published today in the journal Nature Communications.
Previous studies had shown that the neurotransmitter serotonin can drive fat loss. Yet no one was sure exactly how. To answer that question, Srinivasan and her colleagues experimented with roundworms called C. elegans, which are often used as model organisms in biology. These worms have simpler metabolic systems than humans, but their brains produce many of the same signaling molecules, leading many researchers to believe that findings in C. elegans may be relevant for humans.
The researchers deleted genes in C. elegans to see if they could interrupt the path between brain serotonin and fat burning. By testing one gene after another, they hoped to find the gene without which fat burning wouldn't occur. This process of elimination led them to a gene that codes for a neuropeptide hormone they named FLP-7 (pronounced "flip 7").
Interestingly, they found that the mammalian version of FLP-7 (called Tachykinin) had been identified 80 years ago as a peptide that triggered muscle contractions when dribbled on pig intestines.
Scientists back then believed this was a hormone that connected the brain to the gut, but no one had linked the neuropeptide to fat metabolism in the time since.
The next step in the new study was to determine if FLP-7 was directly linked to serotonin levels in the brain. Study first author Lavinia Palamiuc, a TSRI research associate, spearheaded this effort by tagging FLP-7 with a fluorescent red protein so that it could be visualized in living animals, possible because the roundworm body is transparent. Her work revealed that FLP-7 was indeed secreted from neurons in the brain in response to elevated serotonin levels. FLP-7 then traveled through the circulatory system to start the fat burning process in the gut.
"That was a big moment for us," said Srinivasan. For the first time, researchers had found a brain hormone that specifically and selectively stimulates fat metabolism, without any effect on food intake.
Altogether, the newly discovered fat-burning pathway works like this: a neural circuit in the brain produces serotonin in response to sensory cues, such as food availability. This signals another set of neurons to begin producing FLP-7. FLP-7 then activates a receptor in intestinal cells, and the intestines begin turning fat into energy.
Next, the researchers investigated the consequences of manipulating FLP-7 levels. While increasing serotonin itself can have a broad impact on an animal's food intake, movement and reproductive behavior, the researchers found that increasing FLP-7 levels farther downstream didn't come with any obvious side effects. The worms continued to function normally while simply burning more fat.
Srinivasan said this finding could encourage future studies into how FLP-7 levels could be regulated without causing the side effects often experienced when manipulating overall serotonin levels.
Explore further:
Study reveals new link between brain and fat-burning circuit
More information: Lavinia Palamiuc et al, A tachykinin-like neuroendocrine signalling axis couples central serotonin action and nutrient sensing with peripheral lipid metabolism, Nature Communications (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14237
Read more at: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-01-scientists-brain-hormone-triggers-fat.html#jCp
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