Obesity may be due to viruses… Watch out for ’10’ germs!

Obesity may not be due to eating too much and moving too little. This is because, in the last 10 years or so, evidence has emerged that microbial or viral infection may be another key cause of obesity. In the medical world, this is called ‘infectobesity’.

It is not simply providing an excuse to classify infectious obesity. It is to prevent and treat obesity more reliably. Because obesity occurs from various factors such as social, environmental, genetic, and physiological causes, it is only when the cause is accurately analyzed that obesity can be fundamentally blocked.

According to professors Nam Jae-hwan and Na Ha-na of the Department of Biotechnology at The Catholic University of Korea, there are about 10 infectious pathogens known to induce obesity so far. The first infectious pathogen of obesity identified was Scrapie. This causes brain diseases such as so-called ‘mad cow disease’ in sheep and goats. There are also canine distemper virus (CDV), avian RAV-7 and SMAM-1, and mouse bornavirus (BDV), but none of them pose a significant threat to humans.

The most common pathogen causing infectious obesity in humans is a type of human adenovirus. Adenovirus (Ad) is a common pathogen from late winter to early summer. When infected, they usually show symptoms similar to those of a cold. Respiratory symptoms such as coughing, fever and chills, headache, and body aches last for about 2 to 5 days. Gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea or enteritis or conjunctivitis may also occur. Depending on the person, the immune system is healthy and passes without any symptoms.

In particular, Ad-36 has the most extensive effect. Among U.S. adults, the obese group shows a 30% infection rate (antibody possession) and 11% of a normal weight group. It is estimated that the domestic market will be at a similar level.

The principle of Ad-36 inducing obesity has not yet been fully elucidated, so there is no anti-obesity treatment targeting it. In general, it is believed that Ad-36 promotes mast cell differentiation and induces systemic inflammation, resulting in obesity. The peculiar thing is that in this case, even if you exercise, you do not lose weight well, and even though you are obese and have a lot of body fat, your blood vessels are relatively healthy and your blood sugar level is good.