When their brains are stimulated with leptin, an appetite-suppressing hormone, hungry mice prioritize mating and interacting with mice of the opposite gender over eating.
8 in 10 sufferers of binge eating disorders experienced trauma during childhood. Researchers discovered leptin is less effective in the lateral hypothalamus of those who suffered childhood trauma.
A new study aims to generate a model of how the brain and body fat communication system controls the production and release of leptin. The study aims to discover how metabolism is regulated under different environmental challenges.
Researchers have identified novel neurocircuitry between midbrain structures which are modulated by leptin to control eating behaviors in mice.
Study in rats reveals sex differences may play a key role in the effectiveness of exercise as an appetite regulator. Exercising female rats ate more than those who did not partake in physical activity. The same effect was not seen in males.
Normally bushy networks of neural fibers within fat tissue shrink in the absence of leptin, but grow back when the hormone is administered in drug form. The alterations influence the ability to burn energy stored in fat in mouse models.
Consuming too much omega 6 during pregnancy has been linked to an increased risk of neurodevelopmental issues in babies and pregnancy complications. In mice who had higher levels of linoleic acid in their diets, researchers noted altered concentrations of inflammatory proteins and a decrease in hormones that regulate fetal growth and development. Researchers stress the effects of a high linoleic acid concentration in diet are the same for both animal models and humans.
Interleukin-6 interacts with leptin in the lateral parabrachial nucleus to reduce food intake. Reducing IL-6 in the IPBL increases weight gain and could help explain why some are more prone to overeating and obesity.
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.
Researchers debate the roles of the gut and brain hormones play in regulating appetite and metabolism.
A new neuroimaging study found those who achieved greater success at losing weight showed increased activation in regions of the lateral prefrontal cortex, an area of the brain associated with self control.
Researchers report mice fed a high fat diet produce an enzyme called MMP-2, which results in leptin being blocked from binding to its receptors. This, they report, prevents neurons from signaling that the stomach is full. The study suggests blocking MMP-2 may help people with obesity to lose weight.
