A new class of lipids that helps protect the body against diabetes has been discovered by researchers at the Salk Institute and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) in Boston.

The researchers tested this new potentially “good” fat in lab mice that had the equivalent of type 2 diabetes. When administered to the mice, this new lipid reduced inflammation and lowered their blood sugar levels.

The study team also discovered that humans with an elevated risk for diabetes had low levels of these new lipids, which suggests that these fats could possibly be used as a potential therapy for metabolic conditions.

Not all fats are bad for health, such as omega-3 fatty acids typically found in fish. The new lipids, called fatty acid hydroxy fatty acids (FAHFAs), were found to be lower in humans at high risk of diabetes, and were elevated in mice resistant to diabetes.

Alan Saghatelian, one of the senior study authors and Salk professor in the Clayton Foundation Laboratories for Peptide Biology, and colleagues identified FAHFAs as being the fat that differed between normal mice and diabetes-resistant mice. The team also found that when the mice consumed FAHFAs, blood sugar levels decreased and insulin levels increased, suggesting the value of FAHFAs for future therapeutic practices.

“Based on their biology, we can add FAHFAs to the small list of beneficial lipids. These lipids are amazing because they can also reduce inflammation, suggesting that we might discover therapeutic opportunities for these molecules in inflammatory diseases, such as Crohn’s disease and rheumatoid arthritis, as well as diabetes,” said Saghatelian in a statement.

The findings of the study are published in the journal Cell.