High-fat diet feeding disrupts the coupling of thermoregulation to energy homeostasis.

Objective: Preserving core body temperature across a wide range of ambient temperatures requires adaptive changes of thermogenesis that must be offset by corresponding changes of energy intake if body fat stores are also to be preserved. Among neurons implicated in the integration of thermoregulation with energy homeostasis are those that express both neuropeptide Y (NPY) and agouti-related protein (AgRP) (referred to herein as AgRP neurons). Specifically, cold-induced activation of AgRP neurons was recently shown to be required for cold exposure to increase food intake in mice.

Identification of Hypothalamic Glucoregulatory Neurons That Sense and Respond to Changes in Glycemia.

Unlabelled: To investigate whether glucoregulatory neurons in the hypothalamus can sense and respond to physiological variation in the blood glucose (BG) level, we combined continuous arterial glucose monitoring with continuous measures of the activity of a specific subset of neurons located in the hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus that express pituitary adenylate cyclase activating peptide (VMNPACAP neurons) obtained using fiber photometry. Data were collected in conscious, free-living mice during a 1-h baseline monitoring period and a subsequent 2-h intervention period during which the BG level was raised either by consuming a chow or a high-sucrose meal or by intraperitoneal glucose injection. Cross-correlation analysis revealed that, following a 60- to 90-s delay, interventions that raise the BG level reliably associate with reduced VMNPACAP neuron activity (P < 0.

Warm Responsive Neurons in the Hypothalamic Preoptic Area are Potent Regulators of Glucose Homeostasis in Male Mice.

When mammals are exposed to a warm environment, overheating is prevented by activation of "warm-responsive" neurons (WRNs) in the hypothalamic preoptic area (POA) that reduce thermogenesis while promoting heat dissipation. Heat exposure also impairs glucose tolerance, but whether this also results from activation of POA WRNs is unknown. To address this question, we sought in the current work to determine if glucose intolerance induced by heat exposure can be attributed to activation of a specific subset of WRNs that express pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating peptide (ie, POAPacap neurons).

AgRP neurons: Regulators of feeding, energy expenditure, and behavior.

Neurons in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC) that express agouti-related peptide (AgRP) govern a critical aspect of survival: the drive to eat. Equally important to survival is the timing at which food is consumed-seeking or eating food to alleviate hunger in the face of a more pressing threat, like the risk of predation, is clearly maladaptive. To ensure optimal prioritization of behaviors within a given environment, therefore, AgRP neurons must integrate signals of internal need states with contextual environmental cues.

Leptin receptor neurons in the dorsomedial hypothalamus regulate diurnal patterns of feeding, locomotion, and metabolism.

The brain plays an essential role in driving daily rhythms of behavior and metabolism in harmony with environmental light-dark cycles. Within the brain, the dorsomedial hypothalamic nucleus (DMH) has been implicated in the integrative circadian control of feeding and energy homeostasis, but the underlying cell types are unknown. Here, we identify a role for DMH leptin receptor-expressing (DMH) neurons in this integrative control.

Cold-induced hyperphagia requires AgRP neuron activation in mice.

To maintain energy homeostasis during cold exposure, the increased energy demands of thermogenesis must be counterbalanced by increased energy intake. To investigate the neurobiological mechanisms underlying this cold-induced hyperphagia, we asked whether agouti-related peptide (AgRP) neurons are activated when animals are placed in a cold environment and, if so, whether this response is required for the associated hyperphagia. We report that AgRP neuron activation occurs rapidly upon acute cold exposure, as do increases of both energy expenditure and energy intake, suggesting the mere perception of cold is sufficient to engage each of these responses.

CNS control of the endocrine pancreas.

Increasing evidence suggests that, although pancreatic islets can function autonomously to detect and respond to changes in the circulating glucose level, the brain cooperates with the islet to maintain glycaemic control. Here, we review the role of the central and autonomic nervous systems in the control of the endocrine pancreas, including mechanisms whereby the brain senses circulating blood glucose levels. We also examine whether dysfunction in these systems might contribute to complications of type 1 diabetes and the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes.

Leptin regulation of core body temperature involves mechanisms independent of the thyroid axis.

The ability to maintain core temperature within a narrow range despite rapid and dramatic changes in environmental temperature is essential for the survival of free-living mammals, and growing evidence implicates an important role for the hormone leptin. Given that thyroid hormone plays a major role in thermogenesis and that circulating thyroid hormone levels are reduced in leptin-deficient states (an effect partially restored by leptin replacement), we sought to determine the extent to which leptin's role in thermogenesis is mediated by raising thyroid hormone levels. To this end, we 1) quantified the effect of physiological leptin replacement on circulating levels of thyroid hormone in leptin-deficient ob/ob mice, and 2) determined if the effect of leptin to prevent the fall in core temperature in these animals during cold exposure is mimicked by administration of a physiological replacement dose of triiodothyronine (T).

Fertility-regulating Kiss1 neurons arise from hypothalamic POMC-expressing progenitors.

Hypothalamic neuronal populations are central regulators of energy homeostasis and reproductive function. However, the ontogeny of these critical hypothalamic neuronal populations is largely unknown. We developed a novel approach to examine the developmental pathways that link specific subtypes of neurons by combining embryonic and adult ribosome-tagging strategies in mice.