Washington: Too much body fat may be a bad thing, but there is increasing evidence that too little fat also may have some surprisingly negative consequences.
Researchers at UC Irvine have found that fat droplets – tiny balls of fat that exist in most cells – appear to have an intriguing role to play when it comes to regulating excess proteins in the body.
In a study with fruit flies, developmental biologist Steven Gross and colleagues found that these fat droplets served as storage depots for a type of protein used primarily by the cell to bind DNA and organise it in the nucleus.
The fat keeps this extra protein out of the way until it is needed so that it does not cause harm within the cell.
The findings imply that fat droplets could also serve as storage warehouses for other excess proteins that might otherwise cause harm if not sequestered.
The study appears in the current issue of Current Biology.
“We were surprised to find that these droplets appear to be a mechanism for cleaning up excess proteins before they cause trouble,” said Gross, associate professor of developmental and cell biology.
“Obviously, everything in the body should be balanced. There is no doubt that huge amount of fat tax your system in a lot of ways. But there now appears to be growing evidence that fat is also important for keeping us healthy,” he added.
Gross and his colleagues believe the droplets serve this purpose not just for histones, but for other excess proteins, as well.
This has implications for how fat may be helping fight certain diseases when too much of certain proteins are produced.
“In prion diseases, such as Mad Cow Disease, for example, proteins in the brain are misshapen,” Gross said.
“They become abnormal, clump together and accumulate on brain tissue. Although we have no evidence yet that fat droplets could help with this, prion diseases are one area in which we can explore further to see if these droplets are helping keep excess bothersome proteins out of the way,” he added.
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