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Fat Virus

Yep, you read it right. They have discovered that one of the reasons some people become obese is due to a virus. Lab tests showed that exposure to adenovirus-36 (Ad-36), which causes respiratory and eye infections, also causes stem cells to develop into fat cells. Ad-36 stimulates human adult stem cells to become pre-fat cells and store more fat. Not only do they store fat, but they actually do it faster! And... Ad-36 is much more prevalent among obese people than thin people. This could be HUGE (no pun intended)! Imagine what a difference a vaccine or antibiotic could make for those who are affected by this virus, which causes them to gain weight through no fault of their own. The researchers also identified a gene in the Ad-36 virus known as E4Orfl, that appears to be directly responsible for the promotion of fat growth. The identification of this gene provides a target for future anti-obesity therapies, the team said. Oh happy day! Full Story.