Health news: 'Unexpected finding' links oestrogen deficiency and obesity, giving insights for postmenopausal women
The finding saw scientists link oestrogen deficiency to obesity in female mice.
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Scientists were trying to discover the role of the oestrogen receptor in the heart to see how much protection it provides when they made the unexpected findings.
"When we blocked this oestrogen receptor, we were expecting to see changes and damage largely to the heart but rather than seeing a dramatic heart phenotype, what we saw was an adiposity (obesity) phenotype," lead author professor Julie McMullen said.
"So, we observed that the female mice were heavier and had more fat mass, which we weren't expecting at all.
"Rather than energy being expended, energy is instead stored, which explains the increased adiposity in female mice in the absence of ER (estrogen)."
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Once women are postmenopausal and oestrogen levels drop, they are at an increased risk of obesity and diabetes
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Friday, March 10, 2023 at 2:20 am