New stem cell research may have unlocked the secret to curbing obesity, according to a new study published online in the journal Cell Stem Cell.
Researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) developed an approach for targeting fat-generating stem cells that one day could aid in the delivery of drugs that slow adipose stem cells’ ability to direct fat expansion.
The researchers used small artificial proteins (peptides) in a mouse model to identify a marker on the surface of adipose stem cells. Markers are molecules specifically expressed on individual cell types. The scientists screened about 100 billion peptides before finding one that was specific for mouse and human adipose stem cells.
“This marker, called delta-decorin, is specifically expressed on the surface of adipose stem cells, which are responsible for the production of white adipose tissue," said Mikhail Kolonin, Ph.D., the study’s senior author and assistant professor of molecular medicine at the UTHealth Medical School. “This is the first prospective marker to be discovered for this particular type of adult stem cell."
The researchers report that delta-decorin, a modification of a previously defined protein, interacts with another clinically important protein called resistin on the surface of adipose stem cells. They said decorin-resistin connection is particularly interesting because both decorin and resistin have been previously implicated in type 2 diabetes and other inflammation-related diseases.
Researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) developed an approach for targeting fat-generating stem cells that one day could aid in the delivery of drugs that slow adipose stem cells’ ability to direct fat expansion.
The researchers used small artificial proteins (peptides) in a mouse model to identify a marker on the surface of adipose stem cells. Markers are molecules specifically expressed on individual cell types. The scientists screened about 100 billion peptides before finding one that was specific for mouse and human adipose stem cells.
“This marker, called delta-decorin, is specifically expressed on the surface of adipose stem cells, which are responsible for the production of white adipose tissue," said Mikhail Kolonin, Ph.D., the study’s senior author and assistant professor of molecular medicine at the UTHealth Medical School. “This is the first prospective marker to be discovered for this particular type of adult stem cell."
The researchers report that delta-decorin, a modification of a previously defined protein, interacts with another clinically important protein called resistin on the surface of adipose stem cells. They said decorin-resistin connection is particularly interesting because both decorin and resistin have been previously implicated in type 2 diabetes and other inflammation-related diseases.
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