Fighting Fat with Fat (IMAGE)

Sanford Burnham Prebys

Fighting Fat with Fat

Caption

Loss of orexin impairs brown fat function and promotes obesity in mice. This cartoon contrasts the consequences of possessing normal and dysfunctional brown fat in the face of a fat-rich diet. The leaner mouse with functional brown fat (left) dissipates considerable amount of energy as heat. The orexin-deficient mouse (right) lacks fat fuel and active mitochondria, thus storing energy as fat instead of burning it.

Credit

Peter Allen

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