Similarly, in mice studies, TNF-α, the level of which increases already at a very early stage of obesity, upregulates miR-34a, and furthermore, miR-34a expression in visceral fat gradually rises with the development of obesity, while its selective deletion protects against the exacerbation of meta-inflammation induced by dietary stress (54). This evidence concerns the gene TNF and obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency.