A team of US researchers has made discoveries about brown fat that may open a new path to helping people stay physically fit as they age. 
The team from Rutgers University&rsquo;s New Jersey Medical School found that mice lacking a specific gene developed an unusually potent form of brown fat tissue that expanded lifespan and increased exercise capacity by roughly 30%.
The team is working on a drug that could mimic these effects in humans.
&ldquo;Exercise capacity diminishes as you get older, and to have a technique that could enhance exercise performance would be very beneficial for healthful aging,&rdquo; said Stephen Vatner, university professor and senior author of the study published in Aging Cell.
&ldquo;This mouse model performs exercise better than their normal littermates,&rdquo; he added.
Unlike white fat, which stores energy, brown fat burns calories and helps regulate body temperature. This study revealed brown fat also plays a crucial role in exercise capacity by improving blood flow to muscles during physical activity.
The genetically modified mice produced unusually high amounts of active brown fat and showed about 30% better exercise performance than normal mice, both in speed and time to exhaustion.
The discovery emerged from broader research into healthy aging. The modified mice, which lack a protein called RGS14, live about 20% longer than normal mice, with females living longer than males&mdash;similar to the pattern seen in humans.
The discovery could eventually improve human lifespans&mdash;the total time when people enjoy good mental and physical health.
&ldquo;With all the medical advances, aging and longevity have increased in humans, but unfortunately, healthful aging hasn't,&rdquo; Vatner said.
There are a lot of diseases associated with aging&mdash;obesity, diabetes, myocardial ischemia, heart failure, cancer&mdash;and what we have to do is find new drugs based on models of healthful aging, said authors.
&mdash;IANS
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Brown fat tissue expanded lifespan, increased exercise capacity by roughly 30%

It helps burn calories and also regulate body temperature

Brown Fat May Promote Healthful Longevity: Study

It helps burn calories and also regulate body temperature

March 4, 2025 | 10:48 IST