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Professor Ray explains what they found: “Essentially we discovered that the circadian clock, protein REVERB plays an important role in the safe accumulation of body fat. Usually as fat accumulates there is inflammation in the body which leads to diabetes and heart disease. Our research shows that this process is linked to the body clock.”  

 

The team found that REVERB affects obesity-related inflammation by regulating both a hormone that comes from fat, adiponectin, and a master regulator of inflammation A20. Mice lacking REVERB had enhanced fat storage but without the expected inflammation. They also registered higher levels of the hormone adiponectin, suggesting the hormone has an anti-inflammatory role.

 

Dr David Bechtold was one of the key researchers and says: “Our work demonstrates that it could be possible to switch unhealthy fat to a healthier form by tapping into one of the elements which we discovered. We hope that would mean fewer obese people go on to develop more severe metabolic complications such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease.”

 

As part of the study the researchers took fat and blood samples from morbidly obese patients both before and after weight loss surgery. After the surgery these people had both an increase in the hormone adiponectin in the circulation, but also the inflammation regulator A20 in fat itself. At the same time body fat was healthier, with less of the inflammation linked to diabetes and heart disease. 

 

Professor Ray explains their findings: “Our analysis showed that in morbidly obese people who have undergone weight loss surgery the same pathway from the body clock to inflamed fat is activated. This helps explain why surgery results in rapid health improvements for obese people.”

 

He continues: “We believe our research could open up a novel way to treat obesity without surgery. There is the potential for drug development that could stop so many people dying of obesity related diseases.”

 

A clinical research study is now taking place at The University of Manchester, and Central 91直播 University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust led by Dr Martin Rutter to take this research further. The clinical research study is taking place at the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)/Wellcome Trust 91直播 Clinical Research Facility and The 91直播 Diabetes Centre, the first centre to be established in the UK to provide specialist care and education for diabetes patients in the North West.

 

It is using “clock logic” to treat diabetes. Patients eat, sleep and take medication at times that fit with their body clock in a bid to control the disease. It’s hoped the study will demonstrate that strengthening our internal body clock by changing behaviour can be used to treat a condition in a similar way to drugs and surgery.

 

For interview requests please contact:

 

Morwenna Grills Mob: 07920 087466 / Alison Barbuti Mob. 07887 561 318

Media Relations Office | The University of Manchester

Tel:   0161 275 2111

 

Email: alison.barbuti@manchester.ac.uk / morwenna.grills@manchester.ac.uk 

 

The University of Manchester

 

The University of Manchester, a member of the prestigious Russell Group of British universities, is the largest and most popular university in the UK. It has 20 academic schools and hundreds of specialist research groups undertaking pioneering multi-disciplinary teaching and research of worldwide significance. According to the results of the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise, The University of Manchester is one of the country’s major research institutions, rated third in the UK in terms of ‘research power’, and has had no fewer than 25 Nobel laureates either work or study there. The University had an annual income of £807 million in 2011/12.

 

Central 91直播 University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CMFT) is a leading provider of specialist healthcare services in 91直播, treating more than a million patients every year. Its eight specialist hospitals (91直播 Royal Infirmary, Saint Mary’s Hospital, Royal 91直播 Children’s Hospital, 91直播 Royal Eye Hospital, University Dental Hospital of Manchester and Trafford Hospitals) are home to hundreds of world class clinicians and academic staff committed to finding patients the best care and treatments.

 

The NIHR/Wellcome Trust 91直播 Clinical Research Facility (MCRF) is a purpose-built unit focused on supporting experimental medicine research helping to bring new drugs and medical devices into patient care. The facility is based at Central 91直播 University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and receives funding from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The MCRF offers state-of-the-art equipment and facilities for adult and children's studies, and has a team of specialist research nurses and support staff. A satellite unit the Children’s CRF in the Royal 91直播 Children’s Hospital is at the cutting edge of research into inherited renal, metabolic, and hearing disorders. For further information see: www.wtcrf.nhs.uk and www.childrenscrf.org

 

is funded by the Department of Health to improve the health and wealth of the nation through research. Since its establishment in April 2006, the NIHR has transformed research in the NHS. It has increased the volume of applied health research for the benefit of patients and the public, driven faster translation of basic science discoveries into tangible benefits for patients and the economy, and developed and supported the people who conduct and contribute to applied health research. The NIHR plays a key role in the Government’s strategy for economic growth, attracting investment by the life-sciences industries through its world-class infrastructure for health research. Together, the NIHR people, programmes, centres of excellence and systems represent the most integrated health research system in the world. For further information, visit the NIHR website.