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Review
. 2012:2012:824305.
doi: 10.1155/2012/824305. Epub 2012 Aug 1.

Obesity and appetite control

Keisuke Suzuki  1 , Channa N Jayasena, Stephen R Bloom
Affiliations
Review

Obesity and appetite control

Keisuke Suzuki et al. Exp Diabetes Res. 2012.

Abstract

Obesity is one of the major challenges to human health worldwide; however, there are currently no effective pharmacological interventions for obesity. Recent studies have improved our understanding of energy homeostasis by identifying sophisticated neurohumoral networks which convey signals between the brain and gut in order to control food intake. The hypothalamus is a key region which possesses reciprocal connections between the higher cortical centres such as reward-related limbic pathways, and the brainstem. Furthermore, the hypothalamus integrates a number of peripheral signals which modulate food intake and energy expenditure. Gut hormones, such as peptide YY, pancreatic polypeptide, glucagon-like peptide-1, oxyntomodulin, and ghrelin, are modulated by acute food ingestion. In contrast, adiposity signals such as leptin and insulin are implicated in both short- and long-term energy homeostasis. In this paper, we focus on the role of gut hormones and their related neuronal networks (the gut-brain axis) in appetite control, and their potentials as novel therapies for obesity.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The gut hormone signalling to the brain under fasted (a) and fed states (b). (a) During the fasting/preprandial state, ghrelin release from the stomach acts upon the ARC and vagus to stimulate hunger. (b) In the postprandial state, release of anorectic hormones, PYY, GLP-1, OXM, and PP from intestine act upon the ARC, brainstem, and vagus to cause satiety. ARC, arcuate nucleus; NPY/AgRP, neuropeptide Y and agouti related peptide; POMC/CART, pro-opiomelanocortin, and cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript; PVN, paraventricular nucleus; GLP-1, glucagon-like peptide-1; PP, pancreatic polypeptide; PYY, peptide YY; OXM, oxyntomodulin.
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