Too Fat? Common Virus May Be To Blame: Update

Have you tried to refer a child to a pediatric endocrinologist lately? According to the Journal of Pediatrics it may be harder than you think. For every 290 children with diabetes in the United States, there is only one board-certified pediatric endocrinologist, and 2 states, Montana and Wyoming reported no board-certified pediatric endocrinologists. A few months ago we reported that a common virus caused human adult stem cells to turn into fat cells and could explain why some people become obese. Now there a diagnostic test to see if you have that virus. Check out what Obetech has for you to use.

Too Fat? Common Virus May Be To Blame: Update

A few months ago we reported that a common virus caused human adult stem cells to turn into fat cells and could explain why some people become obese. Now there a diagnostic test to see if you have that virus.
Adenovirus-36 — a common cause of respiratory and eye infections – can cause obesity

Now Obetech, a Virginia research company, has developed a diagnostic test for those who have been infected with the common cold virus, human Adenovirus 36 (Ad-36). This virus is quickly gaining recognition as “the obesity virus,” Ad-36 has been shown to trigger proliferation of fat cells, which ultimately leads to obesity in the infected person.

Currently, Obetech offers a diagnostic test which checks for Ad-36 antibodies in the blood. By confirming an individual has been infected with Ad-36, the test can help them predict future weight problems and/or explain unexpected weight gain.
To learn more about Adenovirus-36 read below

"We’re not talking about preventing all types of obesity, but if it is caused by this virus in humans, we want a vaccine to prevent this," said Nikhil Dhurandhar, an associate professor at Pennington Biomedical Research Center at Louisiana State University System.

The virus adenovirus-36 or Ad-36, caused animals to pack on the pounds in lab experiments. "These animals accumulated a lot of fat," Dhurandhar said in a telephone interview.

Dhurandhar also has shown that obese people were three times more likely to have been infected with Ad-36 than thin people in a large study of humans.

Now, researchers in Dhurandhar’s lab have shown that exposure to the virus caused adult human stem cells to turn into fat-storing cells.

Dr. Magdalena Pasarica, who led the study, obtained adult stem cells from fat tissue of people who had undergone liposuction. Stem cells are a type of master cell that exist in an immature form and give rise to more specialized cells.
Half of the stem cells were exposed to the virus Ad-36. After a week, most of the infected stem cells developed into fat cells, while the uninfected cells were unchanged. 

The virus appears to change their commitment to a fat storing cell," Dhurandhar said, adding that Ad-36 is just one of 10 pathogens linked to obesity and that more may be out there.

He acknowledged that some people might find it hard to believe that a virus could be responsible for obesity.
"Certainly overeating has something to do with gaining weight. No doubt about that. But that is not the whole truth," Dhurandhar said. "There are multiple causes of obesity. They range from simple overeating to genes to metabolism and perhaps viruses and infections."

Information for this article came from Thomson Reuters 2008