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Published on 1 Comment on Obesity Markers Found In Urine

You can deceive yourself by calling yourself "big-boned" or "hefty", but your urine doesn't lie! Researchers found 29 biological markers in urine that are associated with body mass. These biological markers in urine are a "metabolic signature" of obesity. Note: Body mass index (BMI) is a measure of body fat based on height and weight that applies to adult men and women. From Medical Xpress:

Urine profiles provide clues to how obesity causes disease

Scientists have identified chemical markers in urine associated with body mass, providing insights into how obesity causes disease. Being overweight or obese is associated with higher risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer, but the mechanisms connecting body fat and disease are not well understood.

The new study, led by Imperial College London, shows that obesity has a 'metabolic signature' detectable in urine samples, pointing to processes that could be targeted to mitigate its effects on health. 

Urine contains a variety of chemicals known as metabolites, from a vast range of biochemical processes in the body. Technologies that analyse the metabolic makeup of a sample can therefore offer huge amounts of information that reflects both a person's genetic makeup and lifestyle factors.

The Imperial researchers analysed urine samples from over 2,000 volunteers in the US and the UK. They found 29 different metabolic products whose levels correlated with the person's body mass index, and how they fit together in a complex network that links many different parts of the body.

Some of these metabolites are produced by bacteria that live in the gut, highlighting the potentially important role these organisms play in obesity. Altered patterns of energy-related metabolites produced in the muscles were also identified as being linked to obesity.

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An exciting research study which finds that it is normal for bacteria to live in the bladders of healthy women, and that urine is not sterile. After further studies on the microbial communities in the bladder, perhaps bacterial treatments for various urinary problems? From Science Daily:

Study debunks common myth that urine is sterile: Bacterial differences found in urine of healthy women and women with overactive bladder

Bacteria live in the bladders of healthy women, discrediting the common belief that normal urine is sterile. This study also revealed that bladder bacteria in healthy women differ from the bladder bacteria in women affected by overactive bladder (OAB), which causes a sudden need to urinate.

Approximately 15 percent of women suffer from OAB and yet an estimated 40 -- 50 percent do not respond to conventional treatments. One possible explanation for the lack of response to medication may be the bacteria present in these women.

"If we can determine that certain bacteria cause OAB symptoms, we may be able to better identify those at risk for this condition and more effectively treat them," said Alan Wolfe, PhD, co-investigator and professor of Microbiology and Immunology, SSOM.

This study evaluated urine specimens of 90 women with and without OAB symptoms. Urine samples were collected through a catheter and analyzed using an expanded quantitative urine culture (EQUC) technique. This EQUC technique was able to find bacteria that are not identified by the standard urine culture techniques typically used to diagnose urinary tract syndromes.

Loyola researchers now plan to determine which bacteria in the bladder are helpful and which are harmful. They also will look at how these bacteria interact with each other and with their host, and how we can use this information to help patients.