It has become known why the belly starts to grow with age

Scientists from the University of California, Los Angeles have identified a cellular mechanism that explains why fat accumulation in the abdominal area increases with age. The research results are published in the journal Science.

They discovered a special type of stem cells - committed preadipocytes (CP-As), which begin to actively produce fat cells in middle age. In young organisms, these cells are almost inactive, but with age, their activity increases dramatically.

"Aging triggers the emergence of a new type of adult stem cells that actively form adipose tissue, especially in the abdominal area," noted one of the authors of the work, Dr. Qiong Wang.

During experiments on mice, it was found that CP-As activation occurs through the LIFR (leukemia inhibitory factor receptor) signaling pathway. Blocking this pathway could become the basis for new methods to combat age-related body mass increase.

Notably, when "old" stem cells were transplanted into young mice, they continued to actively form fat cells. In contrast, "young" cells in the bodies of elderly individuals remained weakly active.

Analysis of human tissues also confirmed the presence of similar cells in middle-aged people. This explains why, over the years, even with stable body weight, muscle mass decreases and fat layer increases.