The research group of Dr. Beáta Lontay published their most recent findings on the mechanism of fat deposition in the journal Stem Cells Development. Obesity is a medical condition in which excess body fat accumulates to an extent that it may have a negative effect on health. Obesity is most commonly caused by excessive food intake in the form of fatty acids. While we have been led to believe that all fatty acids are "bad" for us, it became clear that short and medium chain fatty acids have health benefits. Short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) are produced by gut bacteria through the fermentation of non-digestible carbohydrates that escape digestion and absorption.Since mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are the major source of adipocyte generation, and studies have been conducted into their potential roles in treating obesity, our goal was to describe the effect of SCFAs on MSC. We used human placenta-derived MSCs as an experimental model and demonstrated that SCFAs decrease the capability of stem cells to differentiate into adipocyte lineage and consequently accumulate fat. Since virtually all tissues may contain MSCs, the suppression of their adipogenesis by SCFAs may offer novel therapies for the management of obesity and other metabolic disorders.
Short chain fatty acids suppress fat differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells