Marsupials

Source: phys.org

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Context

• Research shows that brown fat evolved in placental mammals, not marsupials, providing critical insights into mammalian thermogenesis and potential treatments for metabolic disorders like obesity and diabetes.

Details

Key Points

• Evolutionary Biology:
  • The study of the evolution of brown fat in placental mammals and its absence in marsupials.
• Thermogenesis:
  • Understanding the heat-producing function of brown fat and its role in maintaining body temperature.
• Bioinformatics:
  • Utilization of bioinformatic tools to reconstruct ancient UCP1 proteins and understand evolutionary history.
• Metabolic Diseases:
  • Insights into the potential medical applications of brown fat research for treating obesity and diabetes.
• Mammalian Adaptation:
  • How the evolution of brown fat enabled placental mammals to adapt to cold environments.

Facts on Brown Fat

• Brown fat produces heat through the protein uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1).
• UCP1 transforms mitochondria into heater units, converting fat and sugar into heat.
• Brown fat helps newborn placental mammals, including humans, survive cold stress after birth.
• Brown fat protects against metabolic complications by burning excessive fat and sugars.
• The fully evolved form of brown fat is absent in marsupials.

Sources:

phys.org