Berlin, Germany. Genetic factors have a large impact on the amount of leptin receptor, a substance regulating body weight, circulating in the blood. This correlation was discovered by scientists from Charité Medical Center in Berlin, HealthTwiSt GmbH and the Medical School of the University of Hanover in a study on normal-weight twins. The results of this study were published recently in the prestigious American Journal of Physiology. About two years ago the hormone leptin was regarded as a promising new type of weight-loss drug. Leptin is produced by fat cells to prevent weight gain. It can possibly perform this function especially effectively when it is bound to the leptin receptor. The researchers assume that receptor-bound leptin is instrumental in allowing the hormone to pass across the blood-brain barrier into the brain. The sensation of hunger is suppressed in the process and the individual’s metabolism is simultaneously activated.
