Maintaining a good balance of fats in our body is super important for staying healthy.
Eating too much fatty food can lead to health problems like obesity and atherosclerosis, but we actually need fats in our diet.
In a recent study in the journal Nature, scientists discovered a new way our body handles and moves these fats.
A new discovery
Scientists looked at mitochondria, which are like the powerhouses inside our cells, in cells called enterocytes that line our intestines.
Enterocytes are special cells that absorb and move nutrients from the food we eat.
When the researchers messed with the mitochondria in mice intestines, it caused too much fat to build up in the enterocytes, and the movement of fats to other parts of the body got messed up too.
A big deal in this study was that, when mitochondria didn't work right, enterocytes had trouble packaging and moving fats, specifically in the form of chylomicrons.
Why it's important
Chylomicrons are really important because they carry the fats we get from our diet, and getting them where they need to go is crucial for absorbing nutrients.
And it's not just a cool fact for science – it might help us understand and treat problems in people with diseases affecting mitochondria.
Professor Aleksandra Trifunovic added, "These findings could give us new ideas for helping people with digestive issues due to mitochondrial diseases."
Previously, we talked about different kinds of flakes.
