For the first time, a joint research group of Kyushu University and Kitasato University demonstrated that the type of UCP1 gene (gene related to obesity) differs in the non-tremor thermogenin response to cold stimuli, and the evolution of UCP1 is the cold of humankind. He supported the hypothesis that it was important for land advancement.
Non-shivering fever is a physiological reaction that produces heat without muscle contraction.In recent years, it has been reported that UCP1 is associated with non-shivering heat production and that specific variations on UCP1 are abundant in human populations in high latitudes and cold regions.This fact suggests a link between UCP1 and human cold adaptation, but so far no studies have investigated whether the type of UCP1 makes a difference in the body's thermal response.
This time, the group asked 47 subjects to stay for 16 minutes in a room at 90 ° C where non-shivering heat production occurred, and measured oxygen intake, which is an index of heat production reaction.Then, individual UCP1 types were analyzed from the subject's DNA and correlated with oxygen intake.As a result, it was found that there is a correlation between UCP1 type and oxygen intake, and that a specific UCP1 type exhibits higher heat production capacity than other types.Interestingly, a study of the International Genome Information Database found that the frequency of certain UCP1 types was higher in human populations living in areas with lower average annual temperatures.In other words, it was demonstrated that people with the thermogenin-type UCP1 type, which easily converts the fat stored in the body into heat energy, are frequently used in cold regions.
Paper information:[Scientific Reports] Experimental evidence reveals the UCP1 genotype changes the oxygen consumption attributed to non-shivering thermogenesis in humans
