Research suggests animal cells could be used to get rid of unwanted fat in our bodies.

Targeting certain areas where you want to burn fat is tough. Dieting and exercise don’t always work.

Now, scientists have discovered that injecting a unique animal cell into a specific area, such as a double chin or flabby stomach, may burn unwanted fat from that area without affecting other parts of the body.

The process of taking these cells from other animals and injecting them into humans is known as xenotransplantation.

When capsules filled with “genetically modified, fatlike cells” from mice were injected into the target area, they turned the surrounding body fat into heat producing cells called thermocytes, which reduced the amount of body heat. They have tested the treatment successfully on mice, and want to start using it on obese dogs. The next step would be developing it for human use.

The scientist in charge of the study said: “In our preliminary studies in animals, we observed only minor local inflammation caused by degraded capsules with a xenotransplant. If implanted cells from animals do not work in humans, however, we aim to modify human cells so they have the same effect.”