title: From fat fruit fly to human obesity.
abstract: Obesity is a chronic metabolic disease that has become a global problem. Although a tremendous amount of effort has been spent to prevent and treat obesity, its etiology is still largely unknown and there are not yet sufficient strategies to control obesity. Recently, the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, has become a useful model for studying metabolic homeostasis and obesity related disorders. The goal of this mini-review is to summarize the recent achievements of Drosophila models and to highlight the experimental protocols used in studying feeding behavior and energy homeostasis in the fly. The Drosophila models provide useful tools to understand obesity pathogenesis and to develop novel therapeutics.
authors: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA. Electronic address: wsmith@rx.umaryland.edu.
authors: Wanli W
authors: WW
authors: Smith
authors: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
authors: Joseph
authors: J
authors: Thomas
authors: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
authors: Jingnan
authors: J
authors: Liu
authors: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
authors: Tianxia
authors: T
authors: Li
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21287, USA.
authors: Timothy H
authors: TH
authors: Moran
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004330:Drosophila; D005223:Fats / Q000378:metabolism*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D009765:Obesity / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D005223:Fats
keywords: Drosophila melanogaster; Fat deposition; Feeding behavior; Genetic tools; Metabolic homeostasis; Obesity