“Rather than targeting the stem cells, targeting the mature fat provides a [therapeutic] avenue,” said Feldman. These results pinpoint the players in the fat-burning pathway in humans, said Feldman.
One way to get lean may be to selectively burn fat instead of glucose. That's the thinking behind efforts to develop drugs against molecules that regulate the type of fuel the body burns.
Fat is stored in cells as triglycerides. To burn body fat, your body must first break these down into fatty acids and glycerol to move it into your bloodstream. This process is known as fat lipolysis.