New study reveals differences between body fat in men, women

A new study from the University of Virginia (UVA) revealed the differences between body fat in men and women.

The study examined the genetic structure of body fat deposits in bodies to understand its effects on the diseases each sex may likely contract.

"Researchers Mete Civelek, PhD, Warren Anderson, PhD, and their collaborators have determined that differences in fat storage and formation in men and women strongly affect the activity of 162 different genes found in fat tissue. Further, 13 of the genes come in variants that have different effects in men and women," a press release about the study states.

Results suggested that different variants of those genes may have different effects on each gender. Some of the genes have been found associated with diseases like cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.

“Obesity is associated with a number of health risks, and how men and women store excess calories as fat makes a difference in how they have different susceptibilities to common diseases,” said Civelek, of UVA’s Department of Biomedical Engineering, a joint program of UVA’s School of Medicine and School of Engineering.

“We studied people of different ethnicities and health conditions, and we found a group of genes that are different in their abundance between men and women independent of ethnicity or health status," he said.

Meanwhile, past studies had spotted thousands of genes in fat that seemed to behave differently based on gender, but the significant differences emerged in the new study.

“By combining a variety of data resources, we were able to identify specific genes that could be targeted to elicit distinct therapeutic outcomes in men and women.” said Anderson, a member of Civelek’s lab.

Six specific genes were found prominent in terms of the activity of fat tissue. “We can now focus on these six genes as potential therapeutic targets,” Civelek said.

Based on the results, there has been much investigation into sex differences in fat tissue in terms of distribution and other aspects. However, more studies are needed to determine important genetic contributions.

“We believe our findings will be beneficial in precision medicine efforts to find drug targets that can help with specific problems that men and women face,” Civelek said. “For example, men are more prone to cardiovascular disorders and women to obesity. The fat genes we identified could contribute to the severity of those illnesses and how men and women respond to treatment differently.”

Trans fat

Another study revealed that higher levels of trans fat increase the risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s disease later in life.

The study, which examined 1,628 people over the age of 60, who had normal brain function, revealed that higher levels of trans fat in the blood increases the risk of dementia onset. The researchers measured the participants’ levels of trans fats in their blood, as well as their overall health and diet, and followed up after 10 years.

Dr. Jagan Pillai of Cleveland Clinic, who did not take part in the study, said: “What they saw, was that having higher levels of trans fat in the blood, increases your risk of onset of dementia – whether it’s from Alzheimer’s disease as a cause of dementia – or other kinds of dementia.”

Pillai pointed to previous studies which demonstrated that eating the Mediterranean diet, which is low in trans fats, can have a protective effect on the risk of developing dementia. He added that people should recognize that trans fats, which are produced during industrialized food-processing methods, have been shown to have a negative impact on heart health as well.