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ghrelin

·May 24, 2023·6 min read

Hunger Games: Ghrelin and Brain Cells Dictate Feeding Behavior

A new study illuminates how the hormone ghrelin, released when hungry, influences feeding behavior in mice. Ghrelin activates specific neurons in the amygdala, a region primarily studied in the context of fear and reward, prompting food consumption and producing sensations of hunger and satisfaction.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 29, 2023·5 min read

New Pill Regulates Appetite by Modulating Ghrelin Release

A new pill, called FLASH, has been developed to regulate appetite without drugs or invasive procedures. Researchers designed the pill to deliver electrical impulses to the stomach lining, modulating hunger-related gut hormones. The pill has been shown to affect the release of appetite hormone ghrelin in pig trials. FLASH could potentially treat various disorders related to metabolism and eating without pharmaceuticals or surgery. The researchers are now conducting additional preclinical testing and aim to start human trials within five years.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·July 19, 2022·4 min read

Going to the Beach? Planning a Hike? Be Prepared: Men Will Be Much Hungrier!

In males, sun exposure activates the p53 protein which signals to the body to produce the appetite-associated ghrelin hormone. In women, estrogen blocks the interaction between p53 and ghrelin, reducing the urge to eat following sun exposure.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·March 21, 2021·2 min read

‘Hunger Hormone’ Ghrelin Affects Monetary Decision Making

Higher levels of the hunger hormone ghrelin predict a greater preference for smaller, immediate financial rewards over larger, delayed financial rewards.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·October 21, 2020·3 min read

Gut Hormone Blocks Brain Cell Formation and Is Linked to Parkinson’s Dementia

Parkinson's patients have reduced acylated-ghrelin to unacylated-ghrelin ratios in their blood. Lower levels of unacylated-ghrelin have been associated with a reduced ability to generate new neurons and memory impairments.

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·October 13, 2020·4 min read

Hunger Hormone Impacts Memory

The hunger hormone ghrelin doesn't just influence where and when animals eat, it also appears to have an impact on memory. Disrupting signaling of ghrelin to the vagus nerve caused rats to forget they had just eaten, even though the animals remembered they had just had access to food. Findings suggest disrupted ghrelin signaling could negatively impact episodic memory.

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Featured Open Neuroscience Articles Psychology

·August 22, 2020·4 min read

Elevated “Hunger” Hormone Leaves Trauma-Exposed Teens at Higher Risk for PTSD

The risk of developing PTSD was eight times higher in teens who experienced traumatic events and had elevated acyl-ghrelin levels than trauma-exposed teens with lower levels of the hormone.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·September 4, 2019·4 min read

‘Hunger Hormone’ Linked to Memory in Alzheimer’s Study

A study that used postmortem brain tissue samples from Alzheimer's patients and mouse models found the hunger hormone ghrelin is linked to cognitive impairments and memory loss associated with the disease.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·July 26, 2019·5 min read

Meal timing strategies appear to lower appetite and improve fat burning

Utilizing mealtime strategies, such as intermittent fasting or early eating, can help improve fat burning and reduce appetite. Those who practice early eating restricted feeding strategies had lower levels of ghrelin and improved fat burning.

Featured Neuroscience

·December 20, 2018·5 min read

Gut-Brain Connection Signals Behavioral Alterations While Eating: Worm Study

Researchers have identified neurons in the guts of C. elegans that detect when bacteria are ingested and release a neurotransmitter that signals the brain to halt locomotion.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·December 12, 2018·3 min read

Gut Hormone Increases Response to Food

Researchers discover activity in brain regions involved in reward response from dopamine was higher in subjects injected with the hormone ghrelin, but only when responding to images associated with food smells. The study reports ghrelin controls the extent to which the brain associates reward with food odors.