Scientists Create Obesity Vaccine: With It You Can Eat Anything

Imagine being able to binge to your heart's content without fear of gaining weight. That dream could become reality thanks to a new vaccine that makes the body immune to fat gain. It works differently than Ozempic, which helps you feel full longer and thus prevents overeating, writes Daily Mail.

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Researchers at the University of Colorado injected mice with Mycobacterium vaccae, a beneficial bacterium found in cow's milk and soil. The scientists found that weekly injections made the mice virtually immune to weight gain, despite their high-sugar, high-fat diets.

In addition, there was no significant difference between mice that were vaccinated and fed an unhealthy diet and mice that did not receive the vaccine but ate a healthy diet. These results suggest that the vaccine “effectively prevents excessive weight gain induced by a Western diet,” the researchers note.

On the subject: Where do the most obese people live in the US: state rankings

However, the scientists caution that more research in humans is needed. They believe the bacteria reduces stress-related inflammation, which can be triggered by eating a diet high in processed meats, refined grains and sugary drinks.

Inflammation and excess calories can increase levels of cortisol, a stress hormone that increases the amount of fat your body stores. Inflammation also disrupts the production of leptin, a hormone that regulates metabolism and appetite, causing you to eat more to feel full.

(Weight-associated inflammation is a state of chronic, low-level inflammation in the body that occurs due to obesity or high levels of fat mass. It is the immune system's response to the metabolic changes associated with excess weight and plays a key role in the development of problems such as insulin resistance, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other chronic conditions.

Adipocytes (fat cells) begin to secrete pro-inflammatory signaling molecules (e.g. cytokines: TNF-α, interleukin-6). The growth of adipose tissue leads to oxygen deficiency (hypoxia), which causes cell damage and activates the inflammatory response. An unhealthy diet (e.g. rich in sugar and fat) contributes to the disruption of the intestinal microflora, which increases inflammation.

Inflammation is activated through immune cells (macrophages) that infiltrate adipose tissue and increase the secretion of inflammatory proteins. These signals disrupt the regulation of hormones such as leptin (controls satiety) and insulin (regulates blood sugar levels).

Inflammation prevents insulin from performing its function effectively, which is fraught with increased blood sugar levels and the development of type 2 diabetes. Metabolic syndrome appears - a combination of risk factors (obesity, high sugar levels, pressure), which increases the likelihood of cardiovascular diseases. Inflammation affects the liver, heart, blood vessels - as a result, fatty liver, atherosclerosis and hypertension appear.

Losing even 5-10% of body weight can significantly reduce the inflammatory process. – Note.).

These findings are particularly relevant in the United States, where there is an obesity epidemic: Three out of four adults are overweight or obese. Weight-loss drugs like Ozempic have already created a multimillion-dollar market for drugs aimed at combating the problem.

Dr. Christopher Lowry, senior author of the study and professor of integrative physiology at the University of Colorado, said: “What’s exciting is that in this study we saw complete prevention of diet-related weight gain in animals. This suggests that exposure to beneficial bacteria may protect us from some of the negative effects of the typical Western diet.”

The study, published last month in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity, builds on previous work suggesting that Mycobacterium vaccae may reduce inflammation associated with weight gain. In the experiment, one group of mice ate regular rodent chow and did not receive the vaccine.

The other group received a diet consisting of 40% fat, 40% carbohydrates (half of which came from sugar) and 20% protein.
Among the participants with an unhealthy diet, half received the vaccine and the other half did not. The vaccinations were given every 7 days.

After 10 weeks, the group that did not receive the vaccine and ate the unhealthy diet gained 16% more weight than the group that ate the healthy diet and had significantly more visceral fat.
This type of fat accumulates around internal organs and is directly linked to chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

However, among those who ate unhealthy food and received the vaccine, weight gain was the same as in the healthy group. In fact, the vaccinated mice on the unhealthy diet even had less visceral fat than those on the healthy diet.

Luke Desmond, the study's first author and a graduate student in Dr. Lowry's lab, noted:
"These data show that M. vaccae is effective in preventing excessive weight gain induced by the Western diet."

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However, it remains unclear whether humans will have the same results as mice, how much the vaccine will cost, and how it will be distributed in the future.

The team hopes that the vaccine could eventually reduce the burden of obesity across the country, especially as consumption of ultra-processed foods rises, making up nearly three-quarters of the U.S. food supply.

Dr Lowry concluded: "More than half of the food sold in supermarkets is junk food. If we can simply reconnect with these 'old friends' (good bacteria), we could potentially prevent weight gain and other health problems, even with our unhealthy Western diet."

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