Lose weight, gain it back. That’s the frustrating routine for many individuals who have experienced only short-term success with diets. To examine the microbial and metabolic factors underlying this weight loss-regain cycle, researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, ran a series of experiments using a mouse model of recurrent obesity. The composition of a mouse’s microbiome is predictive of post-diet weight regain, which is in part modulated by metabolites released by the bugs, the researchers found. Their results were published today (November 24) in Nature.
“This work adds some insight on how the microbiome acts as a buffer to changes in our diet,” study coauthor Eran Segal of the Weizmann Institute said during a press briefing this week (November 22).
In particular, the researchers found evidence to suggest that mice that were once obese tend to experience alterations in microbiome composition that persist during and after ...
