Yes, I know, you have read the title and are wondering: the fault of what? Of a gene. The cause of our extra pounds, of the flab that accumulates but wears our lives, is a gene that is found in the muscles, and that was recently discovered by the Italian scientist Paolo Piaggi. Piaggi has in fact conducted a study in America which, by identifying a genetic fault to being overweight, could lead to new therapies for severely obese patients.

The study, which is recounted in this paper , was previewed at the   Obesity Society Annual Meeting , during the  2016 ObesityWeek ^SM  in New Orleans.
What does he say? That researchers from  NIDDK’s Phoenix Epidemiology and Clinical Research Branch , led by Dr. Piaggi, would biopsy samples of the skeletal muscle of 219 resting volunteers (Pima Indians), in the next 24 hours and over the next 7 years, recording the weight changes of the participants (all men in good health). 

Among the skeletal muscle genes associated with body energy expenditure (EE), there would be this THNSL2 which would be associated with extra pounds , because it would result in lower body energy expenditure both in general and at rest, i.e. a lower capacity of our body to burn energy (and therefore greater ease in gaining weight).
Dr. Piaggi is no stranger to similar studies: he is currently engaged in the trial of a study that links dietary changes to obesity, examining different dietary approaches and conditions of overeating and fasting and how these affect the body’s ability to burn calories.