A gene named 'Rev-Erb alpha', which is responsible for the internal body clocks, if impaired, may results in excessive weight gain and associated health problems, says a new study.
The report prepared by French researchers offers fresh insights into the effect of proper alignment between the body's internal timing and natural environmental light cycles to check excessive weight gain and the problems arose due to this excessive weight gain.
"It is now clear that impairment of daily rhythms such as shift-work, exposure to artificial lighting, or jet-lag has multiple adverse effects on human health, every effort should be made to maintain or restore normal temporal organization and to avoid potentially disruptive behaviors such as nocturnal meals or light exposure at night," Etienne Challet, Ph.D., a researcher involved in the work from the Department of Neurobiology of Rhythms at the Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neurosciences at the University of Strasbourg in Pascal, France has been quoted as saying,
As a part of the research, Challet and colleagues studied two groups of mice. One group was normal while other group was deficient in Rev-Erb alpha gene. The mice deficient in Rev-Erb alpha gene, it was observed that they became obese and hyperglycaemic even if they ate the equal amount of food at the same time as normal mice.
Further scientific investigation revealed that the Rev-Erb alpha-deficient mice were compared to the normal mice. They found a great difference in the way Rev-Erb alpha-deficient mice metabolized the food they consumed.
The Rev-Erb alpha deficient mice produced much more food than the normal mice, and this occurred particularly during the feeding period. In addition to this, the Rev-Erb-alpha deficient mice relied less on carbohydrate stores when at rest.
"The phrase 'sick and tired' could never be more true," Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of journal has been quoted as saying.
"This research shows that we evolved to live in synch with the natural light and dark cycles of our planet. Strasbourg has long taught us the finer aspects of cuisine; its scientists now explain how night and day can influence whether we are fat or lean," Weissmann further said.
The FASEB Journal has published the study in its online edition.
--with inputs from ANI
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