New Study Reveals Cysteine Deficit Causes Rapid Weight Loss in Mice

• A new study found that removing just one amino acid, cysteine, from the diet of mice led to a dramatic loss of 30% of body weight in a week.

• The study, published in Nature, was based on the work of William Rose, who identified “essential” amino acids that the body cannot produce.

• The study also found that the body’s inability to synthesize these amino acids reduces protein synthesis, triggering fat burning.

• The effect was also observed when two non-essential but important amino acids, methionine and cysteine, were withdrawn from the diet.

• The study also found that the loss of weight was recovered when cysteine was restored in the diet.

• The effect was observed only in genetically modified mice that couldn’t make cysteine.

• The study also found that withdrawing cysteine from the diet had other side effects, such as higher oxidative stress.

• Experts advise caution as the findings are still too early to translate into clinical practice.