This protein can help healthy weight loss by keeping muscle mass intact

How to lose weight without losing essential muscle mass? It is commonly seen that people embark on weight loss journeys without addressing this question and end up losing critical muscle mass along with weight.
Muscle mass is crucial for overall health, as it supports mobility, strength, and balance while reducing the risk of injuries. It boosts metabolism, aids in weight management, and enhances insulin sensitivity, lowering the risk of chronic diseases. Maintaining muscle mass also promotes longevity and improves quality of life as we age.
A study published in the journal of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has found boosting a certain protein can help in

healthy weight loss

without affecting muscle mass.
“Given the importance of muscle mass in physiological resilience and pathophysiological vulnerability, these findings have the potential to direct therapeutic strategies aimed at preserving muscle mass to afford healthy aging and combat

muscle-wasting diseases

such as sarcopenia and cachexia,” the researchers have said.

“A new study from the Salk Institute has revealed that a protein called BCL6 is key to maintaining healthy muscle mass. The experiments showed that mice with lower levels of BCL6 had significantly reduced muscle mass and strength, but increasing BCL6 successfully reversed those losses. The results suggest that pairing GLP-1 medications with a BCL6-boosting drug may help counteract unwanted muscle loss. Similar therapies could also be used to treat other populations prone to muscle loss, such as older adults and patients with systemic diseases like sepsis or cancer,” the University has said in an official statement.

“We are excited to reveal BCL6’s important role in maintaining muscle mass”

This discovery could be a solution for those who use

GLP-1 medication

, usually used to treat diabetes, for weight loss. The researchers have said that patients using GLP-1 drugs can experience rapid and substantial muscle loss, accounting for as much as 40% of their total weight loss.
To investigate BCL6’s role in muscle maintenance, researchers compared mice with and without functional BCL6 proteins. Mice lacking BCL6 exhibited a 40% reduction in muscle mass compared to healthy mice, with compromised muscle structure and function. However, increasing BCL6 expression in the muscles reversed these losses, restoring muscle mass and strength. Additionally, when comparing normal mice to those that had fasted overnight, fasting mice showed reduced levels of BCL6 in their muscles.