Novel mechanism how hypothalamus senses the lipid of the blood.

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K12735
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Eating habits
• Research Institution: Tohoku University
• Principal Investigator: Owda Yuji 東北大学, 医学系研究科, 教授 (20292211)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: マウス / 視床下部 / 弓状核 / グリア細胞 / 脂質

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The hypothalamus is involved in the regulation of food intake and energy homeostasis. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in these activities remain largely unknown. In this study, we examined in detail the localization of fatty acid-binding protein 7 (FABP7) in the hypothalamic ARC. Immunohistochemistry revealed that FABP7+ cells are NG2+ or GFAP+ in the ARC. In mice fed a high-fat diet, weight gain and food intake were lower in FABP7 KO mice than in wild-type (WT) mice. FABP7 KO mice also had lower food intake and weight gain after a single injection of leptin, and we consistently confirmed that the number of pSTAT3+ cells in the ARC indicated that the leptin-induced activation of neurons was significantly more frequent in FABP7 KO mice than in WT mice.

Free Research Field

神経科学