Drug mimics beneficial effects of fasting in mice (Links to an external site)
An investigational cancer drug that starves tumors of their energy supply also shows evidence of improving whole body metabolism, according to a new study in mice from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Shown are sections of liver from mice on a high-fat, high-sugar diet. On the left, more white space indicates greater fat accumulation in an untreated mouse. On the right, in a mouse treated with the drug, the liver shows less fat accumulation.
Natural sugar defends against metabolic syndrome, in mice (Links to an external site)
Mice fed a diet high in trans fats and cholesterol for 12 weeks show fatty deposits in the liver (red staining). A new study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis shows that the natural sugar trehalose blocks glucose from getting into the liver and turns on a gene, Aloxe3, that improves insulin sensitivity and other measures of metabolic syndrome, including reducing such fatty liver deposits.
Natural sugar may treat fatty liver disease (Links to an external site)
Brian DeBosch, MD, PhD, and his colleagues showed that a natural sugar called trehalose prevents fatty liver disease in mice. (Photo: Robert Boston/School of Medicine)