That old excuse about "big bones" doesn't really explain why some folks are fat — or tend to put on weight faster than others — but there may be another explanation with better scientific validity: I'm fat because I'm missing a protein.

Writing in The FASEB Journal, researchers at the University of Rochester say the protein in question appears to play a fundamental role in controlling whether developing cells become fat cells. They suggest that in some people, the protein is turned off or lost, allowing fat cells to accumulate in greater numbers. People with more fat cells tend to become fatter.

It's not clear why the protein is lost, but the discovery of its molecular role in regulating how many fat cells are created makes it a promising therapeutic target. The scientists are working on an anti-obesity drug that restores the protein and its regulatory function.

"Our goal is to prevent or reduce obesity, and in this paper, we've shown how to do this in principle," said lead study author Richard Phipps. "We believe that weight gain is not necessarily just a result of eating more and exercising less. Our focus is on the intricate network involved in fat cell development."

The protein, discovered 40 years ago and previously studied in other contexts, is aptly named Thy1.

Body of Knowledge

Human adults breathe, on average, about 23,000 times a day.

Get Me That, Stat!

In the two weeks following Hurricane Sandy in 2012, there was a 22 percent increase in the number of heart attacks and strokes in the high-impact areas of New Jersey, report researchers at Rutgers University.

Doc Talk

Diaphoresis: sweating.

Mania of the Week

Typomania: an obsession with being published.

Never Say Diet

The speed-eating record for potato latkes (a sort of pancake) is 48 in eight minutes, held by Peter Czerwinski. It's unclear why Czerwinski is nicknamed "Furious Pete" — unless it's because he thought latkes come with maple syrup. They do not. Most often, they are served with sour cream, cottage cheese or applesauce.

Observation

"A natural death is where you die by yourself without the aid of a doctor." — Mark Twain (1835-1910)

Curtain Calls

In 2009, a Nebraska woman named Diana Durre agreed to rendezvous with a Wyoming couple interested in buying a couple of her homebred Yorkshire terriers. They planned to meet beneath the "big Taco Bell sign" in the city of North Platte, Nebraska. Durre arrived early and parked her pickup truck beneath the 75-foot sign. It was very windy, and the sign's pole snapped at a welded joint 15 feet above the ground. The sign fell on top of Durre's truck's cab, killing her. The Yorkies survived. The Wyoming couple arrived after the accident.

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