New Obesity Gene Identified Causes Dogs to Want More Food–And it’s Also in Humans Prone to Over-Eating

[Ghoti Ichthus]

New Obesity Gene Identified Causes Dogs to Want More Food–And it’s Also in Humans Prone to Over-Eating​

By Good News Network
Mar 8, 2025

Obesity genes that cause dogs—and people—to pile on the pounds have been identified.
Researchers studying Labrador retrievers discovered several genes associated with canine obesity—and the Cambridge University team showed that the same genes are associated with obesity in humans.
The gene is called DENND1B, and the researchers explained that it directly affects a brain pathway (called the leptin melanocortin pathway) responsible for regulating energy balance in the body.
An additional four genes associated with canine obesity, but which exert a smaller effect than DENND1B, were also mapped directly from human genes.
“The results emphasize the importance of fundamental brain pathways in controlling appetite and body weight,” explained Alyce McClellan, of Cambridge’s Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience who co-authored the study. “(But) these genes are not immediately obvious targets for weight-loss drugs, because they control other key biological processes in the body that should not be interfered with.”
The team measured how much dogs pestered their owners for food, and whether they were fussy eaters.
“We found that dogs at high genetic risk of obesity were more interested in food,” said Cambridge co-author Natalie Wallis.
“Dogs at high genetic risk of obesity showed signs of having higher appetite—as has also been shown for people at high genetic risk of obesity.”
The study, published in the journal Science this week, found that owners who strictly controlled their dogs’ diet and exercise managed to prevent even those with high genetic risk from becoming obese—but much more attention and effort was required.""

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New Obesity Gene Identified Causes Dogs to Want More Food–And it's Also in Humans Prone to Over-Eating

Obesity genes that cause dogs to pile on the pounds have been identified, with the same genes associated with obesity in humans.

www.goodnewsnetwork.org

Original peer-reviewed journal article

Canine genome-wide association study identifies DENND1B as an obesity gene in dogs and humans​

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ads2145

 

[mattfivefour]

Of course, if there's a gene that causes my overeating then it's not my fault. Right? So my need to exercise willpower and self-control is unnecessary.

That would all be true, IF we were like the animals. But God has given us the ability to choose to do or not do something, and He has also given us the Holy Spirit to empower us in what we do. We are not at the mercy of our earthly nature. Dogs are. We aren't.

 

[Margery]

Some of the modern chemicals in foods, MSG, high fructose corn syrup and a high carb low fat diet like the modern food pyramid suggest, flip the metabolic switches in the body to increase hunger signals and fat storage at the same time.

That has come out of the research into why low carb higher fat diets like Keto, Atkins and carnivore work better for weight loss and maintenance.

Even so, some people are more prone to put on weight, and are more susceptible to diabetes - often tribes that depended more on meat ancestrally, who are suddenly eating a standard American diet.

The choice is to go against modern "wisdom" and the highly touted "food pyramid" that prioritizes carbs over proteins and fats and eat more fat and protein, and less carbs or stay on the diet that got a lot of people fat and sick.

Metabolic pathways matter, but once you have the knowledge then you face the choice. Go with the flow and get worse, or go against cultural norms and try something that works better.