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A particular subset of neurons located in an enigmatic region of the hypothalamus in the brain plays a central role in the regulation of diet and body weight in mice, a study found [19659002] The findings, published in the journal Science, shed light on a previously unknown neuronal mechanism of food regulation and offer new insights into understanding changes in appetite.
Knowledge of the function of a region of the hypothalamus called nucleus tuberalis lateralis, or NTL, is rare, although scientists seek to better understand it because lesions of this brain region in patients lead to sharp declines in appetite and To further explore the role that NTL could play in regulating diet and body weight, Sarah Xinwei Luo of the Agency for Science, Technology and Singapore Research and colleagues have observed the behavior of somatostatin neurons (SST). the NTL using a mouse model.
They found that SST neurons were activated by both hunger (following food deprivation) and after the administration of the hunger hormone, ghrelin. drugs and optogenetics, demonstrated that eating behavior could be controlled – activation increased eating behavior, while inhibition significantly reduced it.
neurons resulted in a decrease in daily dietary intake as well as a gradual gain in weight.
According to the results of the study, SST neurons are needed to control healthy eating and body weight.
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