As the years go by, it is common for us to gain weight. But this change is not just about aesthetics. According to a recent research, scientists from the City of Hope Research Center They identified a new class of stem cells, called CP-As, which arise specifically during the median age and trigger an active increase in the production of abdominal fat.
This fat expansion is not a simple side effect of passive aging; It is the result of a complex and surprisingly active biological process that now begins to be understood more clearly. Research published in Science It reveals that, unlike other adult stem cells that tend to reduce their functional capacity over time, Adipose progenitor cells (CPA) show an opposite behavior in the middle age. In studies conducted with mice, scientists observed that these cells acquire an autonomous capacity to generate new fatty cells massively.
According to the investigation, at 12 months of age (considered medium age in mice), the male specimens experienced a significant increase in the mass of visceral adipose tissue. In fact, More than 80% of the adipocytes in that area were of new formation. This massive adipogenesis, in addition, was accompanied by a lower energy expenditure and insulin resistance, two characteristics linked to metabolic diseases.
Aging not only accumulates fat, it actively creates it
One of the most important findings of the study has to do with how these CPAs are transformed into fat factories. The key is on a specific signaling route: the leukemia inhibitor factor (LIFR) factor recipient. According to Sci Tech Daily, The scientists showed that this signage active directly to the CP-ASwhich suggests that inhibiting this receiver could stop the production of abdominal fat associated with aging.
According to the investigation, when the LIFR was blocked in mice modelsthe expansion of visceral fat during medium age was considerably less. This discovery positions LIFR as a possible therapeutic objective to combat obesity and improve metabolic health in older adults.
Visceral fat is not just a matter of weight
The accumulation of fat in the abdomen is much more than an aesthetic issue. It is related to a higher risk of type 2 diabetescardiovascular diseases, chronic inflammation and accelerated aging. “With age, people usually lose muscle mass and gain body fat, even if their weight does not change much”, Explained Dr. Qiong Wang, co -author of the study.
This means that a person can keep The same number on the scale, but with a different body composition: Less muscle, more abdominal fat. And now it is known that this transformation is driven from within, by a specific type of stem cell that is activated just at the time many begin to notice physical changes.
Humans and mice has the same enemy
Although much of the study was conducted in Murino models, The researchers also identified the existence of CP-as in human fabric samples. This validates the relevance of the findings beyond the laboratory and reinforces the hypothesis that these cells could be responsible for the increase in visceral fat in middle -aged people.
The study also confirms that these stem cells can generate new adipose tissue regardless of the age of the environment in which they are. That is, being transplanted in young mice, the CP-and older animals continued to produce fat as if nothing, which indicates that their behavior is “programmed” by the age of origin, not by the environment.
