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"Discovery Files" Features from the National Science Foundation
"Fat Burning on the 'Fly"
Fully produced report in MP3 format:
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"DRAGON" THEIR WEIGHT AROUND... THE "DISCOVERY FILES": NEW ADVANCES IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, FROM THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION. NEW RESEARCH OUT OF PENN STATE SAYS THAT WE MAY BE ABLE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HUMAN OBESITY FROM THE ALMOST-WEIGHTLESS DRAGONFLY. THIS IS THE FIRST STUDY THAT SHOWS A NON-MAMMAL EXHIBITING A METABOLIC DYSFUNCTION THAT ACTS IN WAYS SIMILAR TO HUMANS. BASICALLY, SOMETHING IS CAUSING FAT DRAGONFLIES: THAT "SOMETHING" SEEMS TO BE A SUPPOSEDLY HARMLESS PARASITE INSIDE THE DRAGONFLY'S GUT THAT CAUSES INFLAMMATION, AND CHANGES METABOLISM. SINCE THE DRAGONFLY IS UNABLE TO METABOLIZE THE FAT, IT COLLECTS AROUND THE MUSCLES--AND YOU HAVE YOURSELF ONE FATTY 'FLY. THE RESEARCHERS WONDER WHETHER THE BALANCE OF MICROBES IN THE HUMAN DIGESTIVE SYSTEM MAY GENERATE A SIMILAR METABOLIC RESPONSE. MAYBE WE CAN LEARN SOMETHING FROM THESE WEIGHT-DRAGGIN' DRAGONFLIES. THE "DISCOVERY FILES" COVERS PROJECTS FUNDED BY THE GOVERNMENT'S NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH BROUGHT TO YOU BY YOU! LEARN MORE AT "N-S-F"-DOT-GOV--OR ON THEIR PODCAST.
For additional "Discovery Files" features from the National Science Foundation, click here.
