Fat? Blame your genes: Researchers find a link between DNA and your metabolism
- There's a link between genes and how fast people convert food to energy
- This is because our genomes are always changing within our cells
Being fat could be down to our genes, a new study suggests.
Researchers have found a link between our genetic make-up and the metabolic rate at which we are able to convert food into energy.
They say this is because genomes, our genetic cells, are forever changing, not just from generation to generation, but within our individual cells.
A person's weight could be determined by their genes, new research suggests
A study of 1,000 people in Canada looked specifically at mutations of RNA which works with DNA to convey genetic information in the mitochondria - the power stations of our cells.
Dr Alan Hodgkinson, of the University of Montreal, said the findings ‘add extra layers of complexity to our understanding of how genetics influence our health.’
He added: ‘Mitochondria are the power stations of our cells, and the more power a cell needs, such as a muscle cell, the more mitochondria it has.
‘Mitochondria are organelles in our cells with their own genetic code, separate from the DNA in our chromosomes, and the many mitochondria in the same individual can have different genetic mutations.
‘Our research helps us to understand how variable mitochondrial RNA processing can be and what the possible consequences of that might be on health.’
He said if DNA is the printing press that determines the functions of a living organism, then RNA is the print that it leaves behind.
There is a link between our genetic make-up and the metabolic rate at which we are able to convert food into energy
He said many other factors are at play in determining the variation in the transcription of mitochondrial RNA.
Dr Hodgkinson added: ‘Your DNA is mostly found in the nucleus of each cell, and there is interaction between products from the genome of the nucleus and the genome of the mitochondria to create cellular energy - they're not completely separate.
‘We find an association between variations in a nuclear gene - the DNA that's from your chromosomes - with the level of modification in the mitochondrial RNA.
‘The resulting modifications may impact cellular energy production, but there is much more work to be done to confirm and fully understand these processes.
‘It makes sense that we would see an association between mitochondria and metabolism rates, because mitochondria are the power packs of each cell.
‘We have determined that our genome's ability to modify itself is partly hard-wired - the open question is how does our genome react to exposures in the environment?’
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