Posted 11.11.2011 at 1:59 pm
10 Comments
These are ordinary mice
Wikimedia Commons
Researchers from University of Lausanne and EPFL University in Switzerland have developed genetically altered mice that have far higher physical endurance than regular mice. These "mighty mice" are able to run almost 50 percent further and for 20 minutes longer, while looking no different than their unaltered cousins, save for slightly larger muscles.
These are not the first genetically modified, high-endurance mice, but these new mice require no extra food to run longer and further farther. The study tweaked the gene that controls the body's burning of fatty acids. Earlier experiments on mice focused on the consumption of glucose, the fuel for sprinting and explosive muscle power. The slightly larger muscles on these new mice were able to perform better without extra food. By burning body fat for better muscle performance, instead of glucose, the new mice did not require the higher glucose supply that the earlier high-endurance mice needed.
"If you are thinking about glucose you are talking about the sprinting muscles – we are talking about the marathon muscles," said Professor Johan Auwerx, lead researcher. "This is not like a sledgehammer or an on-off switch, it is like a dimmer. If you want to treat a patient you do not want to make a superman, you want to protect the muscle so it does not degrade."
The new research, published in the journal Cell, could lead to new advancements in maintaining muscle health in old age, and new drugs to treat muscle-wasting diseases.
10 Comments
To comment, please Login.
Popular Tags
Science
|
|
|
|
|
|
July 2013: The Future Of Flight
The incredible innovations, like drone swarms and perpetual flight, bringing aviation into the world of tomorrow. Plus: today's greatest sci-fi writers predict the future, the science behind the summer's biggest blockbusters, a Doctor Who-themed DIY 'bot, the organs you can do without, and much more.
.jpg)
Popular on Popsci
Most Commented
Science
- What Happens To Women When They're Denied Abortions?
- How I Survived A Week Without Food
- Infographic: This Is What's Causing Climate Change
- Same-Sex Marriage Doesn't Affect Opposite-Sex Marriage Rates, Study Finds
- The Energy Fix: Engineering Triumphs Over Wave And Tidal Forces
- 8 Awesome Things We Learned About Bill Nye From His Reddit AMA
- How Not To Be A Dad: The Latest Science Of Male Birth Control
- In Ancient Ice, Clues That Scientists Are Underestimating Future Sea Levels
- Only 5 Percent Of People Wash Their Hands Correctly
- Bike Shares Make Cities Safer For Bikers
Most Emailed
Science
- The Popular Science Guide To DNA
- Study: People Are Mean To Their Unattractive Co-Workers
- Bacteria Live At 33,000 Feet
- Megapixels: A Mars Simulation In The Sahara
- Retractions Won't Help If Nobody Reads Them
- The Greatest Heists In History [Infographic]
- A Cocktail Scientist Debunks Myths About Ice Cubes
- What Makes You Want To Click This?
- 10 Spectacular Bees Native To The U.S.
- 10 Spectacular Bees Native To The U.S.
Most Viewed
Science
- The Popular Science Guide To DNA
- Study: People Are Mean To Their Unattractive Co-Workers
- Bacteria Live At 33,000 Feet
- Megapixels: A Mars Simulation In The Sahara
- Retractions Won't Help If Nobody Reads Them
- The Greatest Heists In History [Infographic]
- A Cocktail Scientist Debunks Myths About Ice Cubes
- What Makes You Want To Click This?
- 10 Spectacular Bees Native To The U.S.
- 10 Spectacular Bees Native To The U.S.
Online Content Director: Suzanne LaBarre | Email
Senior Editor: Paul Adams | Email
Associate Editor: Dan Nosowitz | Email
Assistant Editor: Colin Lecher | Email
Assistant Editor: Rose Pastore | Email
Contributing Writers:
Kelsey D. Atherton | Email
Francie Diep | Email
Shaunacy Ferro | Email
Today on PopSci.com
.JPG)
Copyright © 2012 Popular Science
A Bonnier Corporation Company. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
Not sure if I followed this right, but does this mean (implemented in humans) that it could help overweight/obese people burn more fat, because their muscles would go to fat before glucose? It still means they have to exercise but...
It was a moonlit night in Old Mexico.
I walked alone between some old adobe haciendas.
Suddenly, I heard the plaintive cry of a young Mexican girl:
La la la, la la....
You better come home Speedy Gonzales, away from tannery row.
Stop all of your drinking with that floosie named Flo!
Come on home to your adobe and slap some mud on the wall!
The roof is leaking like a strainer. There's loads of roaches in the
hall.
(La la la la)
Speedy Gonzales (Speedy Gonzales),
why don't you come home?
Speedy Gonzales (Speedy Gonzales),
how come you leave me all alone?
"He, Rosita, I have to go shopping downtown for my mother,
she needs some Tortillias and Chilli Pepper!"
La, la la la...
Your doggie's gonna have a puppy, and we're running out of Coke.
no enchiladas in the icebox, and the television's broke.
I saw some lipstick on your sweatshirt, I smell some perfume in your
ear.
Well, if you're gonna keep on messin', don't bring your business back
a-here.
(La la la la)
Mmm, Speedy Gonzales (Speedy Gonzales),
why don't you come home?
Speedy Gonzales (Speedy Gonzales),
how come you leave me all alone?
"He, Rosita, come quick!
Down at the cantina, they're giving green stamps with Tequila!"
La, la la la...
What if you run low on fat? This isn't the best trait to have during the winter in the wild...
-Spouting a fountain of nonsense since 1995-
"farther"
id be willing to give this a shot for losing some weight. i eat healthy, very active, but still cant drop pant sizes.
@beefymclovin
With you on that!!!! Wouldn't mind that at all!!
When would this be available to the public??? Will it be through prescription or not?? What are the negatives of this product (I didn't see any negatives up above)?
@eric18,
Considering the article states these mice are genetically modified I would say your chances of having this done is zero.
For those wanting to lose weight it's not rocket science. Energy in vs energy out. If you expend more than you take in you will lose weight. If you are exercising and "eating right" but still not losing weight then you are simply not burning more calories than you are consuming. Period.
Science fiction always seems to be a premonition of the future, so consider the experiments DARPA is performing and experiments like this and in the distant future(or maybe not so distant) you could have genetically modified humans developed as super human soldiers. Being able to run faster, further, jump higher and hold thier breath for far longer than all the rest of us mere mortals.