Gli scienziati dell'università di Warwick, in Inghilterra, hanno scoperto i neuroni che controllano in maniera diretta l'appetito: si chiamano "taniciti"e producono senso di sazietà quando avvertono la presenza di molecole (gli amminoacidi), in particolare due di esse (arginina e lisina), presenti soprattutto in certi cibi.
La scoperta è stata pubblicata sulla rivista Molecular Metabolism e potrebbe avere una duplice ricaduta nella lotta al sovrappeso.
In primo luogo, infatti, suggerisce che, prediligendo cibi ricchi di "arginina" e "lisina" (ad esempio merluzzo, albicocche, avocado, mandorle, lenticchie etc), si possa favorire più rapidamente il senso di sazietà (e quindi in futuro diete specifiche potrebbero essere sviluppate sulla base di questa conoscenza). In secondo luogo si potrebbe trovare un giorno la maniera di attivare dall'esterno con farmaci ad hoc gli interruttori di sazietà presenti sui taniciti e quindi fermare la fame agendo direttamente su di essi.
ATS/M. Ang.
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