Irisin: A Fat Fighting Exercise Hormone

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) including myocardial infarction and strokes are consistently ranked as the largest cause of death in the world. Up to 90% of cardiovascular diseases are preventable by addressing behavioral risk factors such as physical inactivity and diet. Physical activity contributes to weight loss, improves blood glucose control and reduces the risk of heart disease and diabetes. Currently, the best option to reduce the risk of CVDs is to regulate dietary intake and maintain an exercise regimen for fat reduction and stronger bones. This leaves one major question unanswered: what is the best way to burn calories and lose weight?

An exercise hormone, irisin has been identified that should provide a source of motivation for cardio workouts. During exercise, the heart and other muscles are exerted, leading to surging irisin levels that help convert calorie-storing white fat cells into calorie-burning brown fat cells. Irisin also significantly increases the rate at which your body burns fat. We have previously reported on Irisin: Boosting the brain-building benefits of physical activity and The Irisin-Exercise Connection. In a more recent publication, the effects of irisin on fat cells collected from breast reduction surgery patients were studied. Surprisingly, they found a fivefold increase in cells that contained the UCP1 protein that is critical to fat burning. These data revealed irisin treated cells increased expression of UCP1 and browning-associated genes. Furthermore, irisin reduced the number of mature fat cells by up to 60%, suggesting undifferentiated stem cells developed into bone-forming cells instead. Unfortunately, the body only produces small quantities of the fat-fighting hormone irisin. Therefore, this highlights the importance of regular exercise to stimulate the release of irisin to promote weight loss and reduce the risk of CVDs.

Read more here: http://ajpendo.physiology.org/content/311/2/E530

Enzo Life Sciences is your resource for a wide variety of products for your Metabolism and Cardiovascular research needs. We offer a comprehensive portfolio of products from antibodies, proteins, detection kits to libraries and much more. We were the first to market active irisin with a high purity and low endotoxin content. To enable the discovery and analysis of cardiac risk factors, we offer a range of products including the new PLAQPRO™ Lp-PLA2 Assay. This colorimetric readout assay measures the activity of Lp-PLA2 in serum samples as increased levels of Lp-PLA2 have been found in atherosclerotic plaques and rupture lesions.

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