Darkness unveils vital metabolic fuel switch between sugar and fat
`Constant darkness throws a molecular switch in mammals that shifts the body’s fuel consumption from glucose to fat and induces a state of torpor in mice, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston reports in the Jan. 19 edition of Nature.
[..] A series of experiments pinpointed 5-prime adenosine monophosphate (5′-AMP) as the key molecular mediator of the constant darkness effect, switching mice from a glucose-burning, fat-storing state to a fat-burning, glucose-conserving lethargy.’
