Pythons are capable of consuming large amounts of food at once without harming their health, and then can go without eating for several months. In a recent study, researchers isolated a metabolite from python blood that was found to support prolonged fasting in these snakes. When this substance was administered to obese mice, it led to reduced appetite and weight loss without negative side effects.

Unique Feeding Habits of Pythons

Pythons are an example of an organism with an extreme model of feeding and fasting. These snakes can reach impressive sizes, swallow prey as large as their own body weight, and survive without food for months or even years, all while maintaining heart health and muscle mass.

After consuming a large meal, the size of most python organs increases by more than 50%, and their metabolic rate rises by 4,000 times. Once digestion is complete, all processes return to their baseline levels and remain stable until the next meal.

Metabolite Research

A team of scientists from U.S. universities studied blood samples from royal and Burmese pythons that were fed once every 28 days. Analyses were conducted immediately after feeding. As a result, 208 metabolites were identified, with concentrations that significantly increased after eating. One metabolite stood out in particular: para-tyramine-O-sulfate (pTOS), whose level increased a thousandfold.

Further experiments showed that pTOS is produced by the python’s gut bacteria when processing the amino acid tyrosine, which comes from protein-rich food.

The Effect of pTOS on the Body

Injecting pTOS into pythons led to a sharp increase in neuron activity in the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus—a brain region responsible for regulating energy balance and the feeling of satiety. A similar effect was observed in laboratory mice with obesity: after receiving high doses of pTOS, their appetite decreased and body weight dropped, without loss of muscle mass, weakness, or digestive problems.

Potential Applications

The study concluded that pTOS plays a key role in the metabolic adaptations of pythons, enabling communication between the gut and brain to maintain energy balance during extended fasting. Mice do not naturally produce pTOS, but in humans, its blood level increases two- to fivefold after eating. Future research aims to study the mechanism of pTOS action in humans and explore its potential use in treating obesity.

Additionally, the research team plans to determine the functions of other metabolites whose levels in pythons rise by 500–800% after feeding.