A team of researchers in the US has discovered a gene that stops signals informing the brain that the body has received enough food and thus results in over eating and possible obesity.

Dr Baoki Xu, from Georgetown University Medical Centre in the US said that the discovery of `Bdnf' gene variant, which was studied in laboratory on mice, could lead to develop ways for enabling the brain to control the body weight. The team believes that it has discovered the `gluttony gene' that does not inform the brain when a person is feeling full after eating a meal.

Hormonal and neuronal signals inform the brain about feelings like hunger and satiety. The hormones leptin and insulin activates the hypothalamus region and informs that brain the enough food has been eaten.

However, if the brain does not receive the signal then the urge to eat continues and results in over eating by the person. "Short" versions of the Bdnf gene block the leptin and insulin signals, according to the researchers.

The research is reported online in the journal Nature Medicine.