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** 5 April 2024
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** UK
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** ‘Fat gene’ found which makes adults six times more likely to be obese (#2)
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** International
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** British holidaymakers warned as Canary Islands propose strict new smoking rules (#1)
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** Link of the week
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** Webinar with the CMO on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill (#5)
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** Podcast: Let’s talk e-cigarettes – Dr Ian Pope (#6)
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** UK
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** ‘Fat gene’ found which makes adults six times more likely to be obese
A fat gene which makes an adult six times more likely to be obese has been found by scientists.
Around 1 in 6,500 adults, or around 10,000 people in the UK, are thought to have the faulty version of the BSM gene, also known as “Bassoon”.
It is active only in the brain and scientists believe it is the first fat-linked gene so far discovered to be exclusively associated with adulthood obesity and not lifelong obesity, including in childhood.
How the gene causes obesity is unknown but the scientists think it may be that affected people have issues making new neurons and the subsequent neurodegeneration could worsen appetite control.
Around 70 people in a study of the half a million UK Biobank participants were found to have the defective gene. Analysis shows these people had a six-fold increased risk of being obese as adults.
The work could be used to screen people with excessive weight for the gene but targeting it directly as a treatment is unlikely to work as it is ubiquitous in the brain. Bassoon plays a key role in how signals are transferred around the brain, passing them across the gaps between neurons.
The faulty gene, the scientists think, may slow down the creation of new neurons and this may interfere with the brain’s ability to rein in hunger and appetite and may be interfering with the sensation of satiety so that even though the body is full, the mind wants more.
Drugs which are known to help weight loss, such as Ozempic and Wegovy, work by interfering with the brain’s processing of satiety and therefore stop the sensation of needing to eat.
However, this category of drugs, known as GLP-1s, work by interfering with a different pathway in the brain, and will likely have no impact on the hunger caused by the flawed Bassoon gene.
Source: The Telegraph, 4 April 2024
See also: Zhao, Y., Chukanova, M., Kentistou, K.A. et al. Protein-truncating variants in BSN are associated with severe adult-onset obesity, type 2 diabetes and fatty liver disease ([link removed]) . Nat Genet (2024)
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Read Here ([link removed])
** International
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** British holidaymakers warned as Canary Islands propose strict new smoking rules
The Canary Island government is set to tighten its smoking regulations, including a ban on lighting cigarettes in the outdoor terraces of bars and restaurants.
A more radical national smoking bill is due to be discussed at the upcoming Interterritorial Health Council meeting between regional authorities and Spain’s Ministry of Health.
Among the strengthened measures to “protect against passive smoking”, the national bill proposes generic packaging for cigarettes, removing brand logos and prohibiting the sale of single-use vapes that are non-biodegradable.
Additional tightening of restrictions and regulations on the sales and advertising of vapes and electric cigarettes are included in the bid to control tobacco consumption.
Source: The Independent, 4 April 2024
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**
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Read Here ([link removed])
** Link of the week
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** Webinar with the CMO on the Tobacco and Vapes Bill
ASH is hosting a webinar to inform stakeholders about how they can support the Tobacco and Vapes Bill as it progresses through parliament. The webinar will include an update from the Chief Medical Officer for England, Professor Sir Chris Whitty, on the purpose and expected timeline of the Bill, followed by updates from national and local stakeholders.
The webinar will take place on Tue, 09 Apr, 10:00 - 11:00 via MS Teams.
Please register to attend here ([link removed]) .
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Register Here ([link removed])
** Podcast: Let’s talk e-cigarettes – Dr Ian Pope
Associate Professor Jamie Hartmann-Boyce and Dr Nicola Lindson discuss the new evidence in e-cigarette research and interview Dr Ian Pope, an emergency medicine physician and honorary associate professor at Norwich Medical School, about his new trial, which he co leads with Professor Caitlin Notley from the University of East Anglia. The study tested the real-world effectiveness of an emergency department based smoking cessation intervention that included provision of an e-cigarette starter kit compared to usual care.
Read full study here - Cessation of Smoking Trial in the Emergency Department (COSTED): a multicentre randomised controlled trial ([link removed])
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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.
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