Cerebrospinal fluid ghrelin is negatively associated with body mass index.

Ghrelin is a 28 amino acid peptide hormone, predominantly expressed in the gastric epithelium and, at a lower level, in the hypothalamus. Although several lines of evidence indicate that ghrelin has a role in appetite regulation, nevertheless the regulation and role of central ghrelin levels remain unclear. To further characterize the role of ghrelin in the regulation of body adiposity, we investigated the association between fasting cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) ghrelin levels and body mass index (BMI) in humans.