Regulation of Energy Intake & Body Weight Regulation Flashcards

1
Q

Role of hypothalamus in regulation of energy balance and body weight regulation

A
  • Hypothalamus involved in both control of short- and long-term regulation of body weight
  • PVN, VMN, Arc, LH regulate food intake/disposition
    • Process information concerning peripheral energy stores
    • Then stimulate or inhibit feeding/alter gastric motility and food metabolism/utilization
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2
Q

Role of ventromedial nucleus (VMN) in regulation of energy balance and body weight

A
  • Inhibitory (-)
  • “Satiety center”
  • If your ventral (tummy) region is full –> stop eating
  • Stimulation of this region results in cessation of eating even in hungry animals
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3
Q

Role of lateral hypothalamus in regulation of energy balance and body weight

A
  • Stimulatory (+)
  • Causes voracious eating via melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) and orexins (hypocretins)
  • If your lateral region is skinny, keep eating
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4
Q

Role of arcuate nucleus (Arc) in regulation of energy balance and body weight

A
  • Inhibitory and stimulatory (+/-)
  • Activation can produce hunger via NPY/AgRP
  • Also can produce satiety via a-MSH/POMC-CART
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5
Q

Mechanisms used by hypothalamus to promote/inhibit food intake

A
  • Regulating food intake (hunger/satiety)
  • Altering gastric motility
  • Altering food metabolism/utilization
  • Neurons in LH support behaviors like chewing, licking, swallowing (via cranial nerves)
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6
Q

Impact of knocking out the POMC gene

A
  • Also knocks out a-MSH
  • Increase body weight
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7
Q

Impact of knocking out NPY gene

A
  • Decrease weight
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8
Q

Impact of loss-of-function mutation in melanocortin receptor (MCR)

A
  • Increase weight
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9
Q

Peripheral hormones derived from GI tract (4)

A
  • Ghrelin (stomach)
  • CCK (duodenum)
  • PYY (distal ileum)
  • GLP-1 (distal ileum)
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10
Q

Role of ghrelin in regulating food intake/body weight

A
  • Stimulatory (+)
  • Makes your tummy growl, peaks prior to a meal
    • Ghrelin = growlin’
  • Stimulates NPY/AgRP neurons
  • Works opposite to leptin and insulin
  • Increases food intake
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11
Q

Role of CCK in regulating food intake/body weight

A
  • Inhibitory (-)
  • Senses food
  • Activates vagal afferents in peritoneum and area postrema
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12
Q

Role of PYY in regulating food intake/body weight

A
  • Inhibitory (-)
  • Anorexic effect via inhibition of hypothalamic NPY/AgRP neurons
  • Decreases food intake
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13
Q

Role of GLP-1 in regulating food intake/body weight

A
  • Inhibitory (-)
  • Incretin hormone
  • Acts on area postrema via NTS
  • Reduces food intake
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14
Q

Peripheral hormone released from the pancreas & its role in regulating food intake/body weight

A
  • Insulin! (durrr)
  • Inhibitory (-)
  • Works like leptin
  • Levels parallel body fat content
  • Receptors in hypothalamus and brainstem
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15
Q

Peripheral hormone released from adipose tissue & its role in regulating food intake/body weight

A
  • Leptin
  • Inhibitory (-)
  • “Satiety hormone”
  • Receptors in arcuate nucleus and VMN
  • Inhibits NPY/AgRP
  • Activates a-MSH/CART
    • Found by mouse model –> knockouts are hugely obese
    • Not the silver bullet of obesity cure
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16
Q

Role of brain reward pathways & environmental cues in development of obesity

A
  • Food is rewarding
  • We override homeostatic signals to stop us from eating –> get fat
  • Taste info goes through NTS to hypothalamus, thalamus, amygdala, forntal cortex
  • Affects areas of feeding & satiety PLUS motivation & reward
  • Nucleus accumbens and dopamine afferents involved in drug addiction PLUS induction of feeding
  • Serotonin also impacts feeding (phen/fen used as obesity tx)
    • SSRI activates a-MSH/CART neurons –> decrease food intake
  • Eating is cognitive/executive decision
  • Affected by social/environmental cues, depression, anxiety
17
Q

Internal inputs to food intake behavior

A
  • Reward mechanisms
  • Cravings
  • Thinking about food (you are now, aren’t you?)
  • Restraint - can you ignore a delicious cookie? (nope)
  • Learned behaviors - how did you learn to eat?
  • Attention
18
Q

External inputs to food intake behavior

A
  • Environmental cues
    • Sight
    • Smell
    • Taste
  • Availability and portions
  • Social context
  • Time cues
19
Q

Simplified “cause” of obesity

A
  • Non-homeostatic regulation (internal and external inputs) overrules homeostatic physiologic regulation of energy intake