Obesity is a world health problem since excessive accumulation of fat tissue (or adipose tissue) increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, and some types of cancer. However, some obese individuals are less susceptible to these conditions.

According to a recent study published by researchers at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) and CIBERDEM in Nature Cell Biology, deficiency in the protein DOR (also called TP53INP2) stimulates the generation of new adipose cells (which store fat) and leads to a less harmful kind of obesity. This article is one of the topics highlighted on the cover of April's issue of Nature Cell Biology.

In this study, which was led by Antonio Zorzano, IRB Barcelona researcher, full professor of the University of Barcelona and member of CIBERDEM, in collaboration with labs in Gotemburg (Sweden), Tarragona, and Girona, the scientists observed that obese patients have low levels of DOR in adipose tissue.

To further study the link between DOR and obesity, researchers in the Complex Metabolic Diseases and Mitochondria Lab, which headed the study, generated a DOR-deficient mouse model. This animal is characterized by marked obesity in the absence of metabolic complications, such as glucose intolerance or inflammation. These features mimic the effect observed in the obese but metabolically healthy patients included in this study. These findings shed light on the mechanism that allows some individuals not to develop the diseases associated with obesity.