Influence of visual food cues on autonomic activity and craving

Abstract Background Preclinical studies demonstrated that glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) is locally synthesized in taste bud cells and that GLP-1 receptor exists on the gustatory nerves in close proximity to GLP-1-containing taste bud cells. This local paracrine GLP-1 signalling seems to be specifically involved in the perception of sweets. However, the role of GLP-1 in taste perception remains largely unaddressed in clinical studies. Whether any weight-reducing effects of GLP-1 receptor agonists are mediated through the modulation of taste perception is currently unknown. Methods and analysis This is an investigator-initiated, randomized single-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. We will enrol 30 women with obesity and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Participants will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to either semaglutide 1.0 mg or placebo for 16 weeks. The primary endpoints are alteration of transcriptomic profile of tongue tissue as changes in expression level from baseline to follow-up after 16 weeks of treatment, measured by RNA sequencing, and change in taste sensitivity as detected by chemical gustometry. Secondary endpoints include change in neural response to visual food cues and to sweet-tasting substances as assessed by functional MRI, change in body weight, change in fat mass and change in eating behaviour and food intake. Discussion This is the first study to investigate the role of semaglutide on taste perception, along with a neural response to visual food cues in reward processing regions. The study may identify the tongue and the taste perception as a novel target for GLP-1 receptor agonists. Ethics and disseminations The study has been approved by the Slovene National Medical Ethics Committee and will be conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and Good Clinical Practice guidelines. Results will be submitted for publication in an international peer-reviewed scientific journal. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.govNCT04263415. Retrospectively registered on 10 February 2020

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Acute diet soda consumption alters brain responses to food cues in humans: A randomized, controlled, cross-over pilot study

Nutrition and Health ◽

10.1177/0260106021993753 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 026010602199375

Author(s):

Olivia M. Farr

Keyword(s):

Pilot Study ◽

Epidemiological Studies ◽

Potential Mechanism ◽

Food Cues ◽

Diet Soda ◽

Brain Responses ◽

Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽

Carbonated Water ◽

Soda Consumption ◽

Visual Food Cues

Background: Diet soda consumption has frequently been linked to obesity and its comorbidities in epidemiological studies. Whether this link is causal and a potential mechanism remains to be determined. Aim/Methods: This randomized, cross-over, controlled pilot study sought to determine whether there may be changes in reward-related brain activations to visual food cues after acute consumption of diet soda versus regular soda or carbonated water using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Results: Diet soda as compared to carbonated water consumption increased activation of reward-related caudate to highly versus less desirable food cues. Diet soda as compared to regular soda increased reward-related insula and decreased activation of cognitive control-related dorsolateral prefrontal cortex to food cues versus non-food cues. No changes in ratings of hunger an hour after beverage consumption were observed. Conclusions: These results may suggest a potential mechanism for diet soda to increase food palatability through activation of the reward system and suppression of inhibitory control that remains to be confirmed by future studies.

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The processing of visual food cues during bitter aftertaste perception in females with high vs. low disgust propensity: an fMRI study

Brain Imaging and Behavior ◽

10.1007/s11682-021-00455-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Anne Schienle ◽

Albert Wabnegger

Keyword(s):

Personality Trait ◽

Visual Cues ◽

Critical Role ◽

Relevant Information ◽

Anterior Cingulate ◽

Conflict Monitoring ◽

Food Cues ◽

Sweet Food ◽

Visual Food Cues ◽

Disgust Propensity

AbstractAn extremely bitter taste can signal food spoilage, and therefore typically elicits disgust. The present cross-modal functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment investigated whether the personality trait ‘disgust propensity’ (DP; temporally stable tendency to experience disgust across different situations) has an influence on the processing of visual food cues during bitter aftertaste perception. Thirty females with high DP and 30 females with low DP viewed images depicting sweet food (e.g., cakes, ice cream) and vegetables, once in combination with an extremely bitter aftertaste (concentrated wormwood tea), and once with a neutral taste (water). Females highly prone to disgust (compared to low disgust-prone females) showed increased activity in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and increased mPFC-insula connectivity when presented with the mismatch of a bitter aftertaste and visual cues of sweet food. The ACC is involved in conflict monitoring and is strongly interconnected with insular areas. This connection plays a critical role in awareness of changes in homeostatic states. Our findings indicate that the personality trait DP is associated with cross-modal integration processes of disgust-relevant information. Females high in DP were more alert to food-related sensory mismatch (pleasant visual features, aversive taste) than females low in DP.

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Effects of overfeeding on the neuronal response to visual food cues

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition ◽

10.1093/ajcn/86.4.965 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 86 (4) ◽

pp. 965-971 ◽

Cited By ~ 111

Author(s):

Marc-Andre Cornier ◽

Sandra S Von Kaenel ◽

Daniel H Bessesen ◽

Jason R Tregellas

Keyword(s):

Neuronal Response ◽

Food Cues ◽

Visual Food Cues

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Suppressive responses by visual food cues in postprandial activities of insular cortex as revealed by magnetoencephalography

Brain Research ◽

10.1016/j.brainres.2014.04.021 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 1568 ◽

pp. 31-41 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Takahiro Yoshikawa ◽

Masaaki Tanaka ◽

Akira Ishii ◽

Yasuyoshi Watanabe

Keyword(s):

Insular Cortex ◽

Food Cues ◽

Visual Food Cues

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How task demands shape brain responses to visual food cues

Human Brain Mapping ◽

10.1002/hbm.23560 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 38 (6) ◽

pp. 2897-2912 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Tanja Maria Pohl ◽

Claus Tempelmann ◽

Toemme Noesselt

Keyword(s):

Task Demands ◽

Food Cues ◽

Brain Responses ◽

Visual Food Cues

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Visual food cues decrease postprandial glucose concentrations in lean and obese men without affecting food intake and related endocrine parameters

Appetite ◽

10.1016/j.appet.2017.07.001 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 117 ◽

pp. 255-262 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Swantje Brede ◽

Annika Sputh ◽

Ann-Christin Hartmann ◽

Manfred Hallschmid ◽

Hendrik Lehnert ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Food Intake ◽

Postprandial Glucose ◽

Food Cues ◽

Endocrine Parameters ◽

Visual Food Cues

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Insulin sensitivity affects corticolimbic brain responses to visual food cues in polycystic ovary syndrome patients

Hormone Molecular Biology and Clinical Investigation ◽

10.1515/hmbci-2015-0048 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 24 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Hanin M. Alsaadi ◽

Dean A. Van Vugt

Keyword(s):

Polycystic Ovary ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Anterior Cingulate ◽

Food Cues ◽

Ovary Syndrome ◽

Insulin Resistant ◽

Brain Responses ◽

Glucose Challenge ◽

Visual Food Cues ◽

Food Pictures

AbstractThis study examined the effect of insulin sensitivity on the responsiveness of appetite regulatory brain regions to visual food cues.Nineteen participants diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) were divided into insulin-sensitive (n=8) and insulin-resistant (n=11) groups based on the homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA2-IR). Subjects underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while viewing food pictures following water or dextrose consumption. The corticolimbic blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) responses to high-calorie (HC) or low-calorie (LC) food pictures were compared within and between groups.BOLD responses to food pictures were reduced during a glucose challenge in numerous corticolimbic brain regions in insulin-sensitive but not insulin-resistant subjects. Furthermore, the degree of insulin resistance positively correlated with the corticolimbic BOLD response in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), anterior cingulate and ventral tegmental area (VTA) in response to HC pictures, and in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), mPFC, anterior cingulate, and insula in response to LC pictures following a glucose challenge. BOLD signal in the OFC, midbrain, hippocampus, and amygdala following a glucose challenge correlated with HOMA2-IR in response to HC-LC pictures.We conclude that the normal inhibition of corticolimbic brain responses to food pictures during a glucose challenge is compromised in insulin-resistant subjects. The increase in brain responsiveness to food pictures during postprandial hyperinsulinemia may lead to greater non-homeostatic eating and perpetuate obesity in insulin-resistant subjects.

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