Role of the brain in energy balance and obesity

1996 ◽  
Vol 271 (3) ◽  
pp. R491-R500 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. E. Levin ◽  
V. H. Routh

Energy balance and body weight are regulated in short, intermediate, and long cycles that are superimposed on each other. We propose that the brain is the primary center of this regulation. The brain has evolved mechanisms for sensing the energy status of the body using neural and metabolic signals such as glucose, insulin, and leptin. It has central processing and storage capacity for handling this afferent information and can change both structurally and functionally in response to its internal and external milieu. The brain regulates energy balance through its control of energy intake on the one hand and expenditure and storage on the other using neurohumoral mechanisms that include the autonomic nervous system. Work in animal models suggests that the brain of obese individuals largely ignores signals of excess adiposity from the periphery, keeping the body weight set point at pathologically high levels. Disordered regulation of neuropeptide Y and monoamine metabolism within the ventromedial hypothalamus is a consistent finding in the brains of obesity-prone and obese rodents. Such dysregulation causes inappropriate neurohumoral control of metabolism and autonomic output to organs such as the pancreas, resulting in increased metabolic efficiency and persistent adiposity. The high recidivism rate in the treatment of obesity suggests that central dysfunction may be due to long-term reorganization of the nervous system in such a way as to perpetuate the abnormally high set point of body weight.

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3-s) ◽  
pp. 37-42
Author(s):  
Hadjer Bekhedda ◽  
Norredine Menadi ◽  
Abbassia Demmouche ◽  
Abdelaziz Ghani ◽  
Hicham Mai

Introduction: Aluminum (Al) has the potential to be neurotoxic in human and animals, is present everywhere in the environment, many manufactured foods and medicines and is also added to drinking water for purification purposes and tooth paste cosmetic products They accumulate in living organisms and disrupt balances, and accumulate in the body biological systems, causing toxic effects (They may affect the nervous system, kidney, liver, respiratory or other functions). Nervous system is a vulnerable target for toxicants due to critical voltages which must be maintained in the cells and the all responses when voltages reach threshold levels. Objective This study aimed to expose the impact of aluminum chloride (AlCl3) on brain architecture. Methods: In our study, twenty healthy female rats were intraperitoneal administered of aluminum chloride (ALCL3) at 10 mg / kg body weight with consecutively for 15 day Result. The results showed a highly significant reduction in body weight (p<0.0001).  This is because aluminum has an anorectic effect contrariwise, there is no significant impact of aluminium exposure has been observed with respect to brain weight and relative brain weight respectively (p<0.912), (p<0.45). The histological study describes the alterations in the brain marked tissue necrosis and cytoplasmic vacuolations and karyopyknosis of neuronal cells of the brain. Conclusion; Aluminum is a toxic heavy metal and a ubiquitous environmental pollutant. It can alter the permeability of the blood-brain barrier and enter the brain, severely affecting the functioning of the nervous system. Keywords: Toxicity, brain, Aluminium chloride, Rats female, necrosis.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-5 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Messina ◽  
V. De Luca ◽  
An. Viggiano ◽  
A. Ascione ◽  
T. Iannaccone ◽  
...  

The prevalence of obesity is increasing in the industrialized world, so that the World Health Organization considers obesity as a “pandemia” in rich populations. The autonomic nervous system plays a crucial role in the control of energy balance and body weight. This review summarizes our own data and perspectives, emphasizing the influence exerted by autonomic nervous system on energy expenditure and food intake, which are able to determine the body weight. Activation of the sympathetic discharge causes an increase in energy expenditure and a decrease in food intake, while reduction of food intake and body weight loss determines a reduction of the sympathetic activity. On the other hand, pathophysiological mechanisms of the obesity involve alterations of the sympathetic nervous system in accordance with the “Mona Lisa Hypothesis,” an acronym for “most obesities known are low in sympathetic activity.” Furthermore, the parasympathetic influences on the energy expenditure are analyzed in this review, showing that an increase in parasympathetic activity can induce a paradoxical enhancement of energy consumption.


Parasitology ◽  
1941 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 373-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gwendolen Rees

1. The structure of the proboscides of the larva of Dibothriorhynchus grossum (Rud.) is described. Each proboscis is provided with four sets of extrinsic muscles, and there is an anterior dorso-ventral muscle mass connected to all four proboscides.2. The musculature of the body and scolex is described.3. The nervous system consists of a brain, two lateral nerve cords, two outer and inner anterior nerves on each side, twenty-five pairs of bothridial nerves to each bothridium, four longitudinal bothridial nerves connecting these latter before their entry into the bothridia, four proboscis nerves arising from the brain, and a series of lateral nerves supplying the lateral regions of the body.4. The so-called ganglia contain no nerve cells, these are present only in the posterior median commissure which is therefore the nerve centre.


2016 ◽  
Vol 48 (7) ◽  
pp. 491-501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madeliene Stump ◽  
Deng-Fu Guo ◽  
Ko-Ting Lu ◽  
Masashi Mukohda ◽  
Xuebo Liu ◽  
...  

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ), a master regulator of adipogenesis, was recently shown to affect energy homeostasis through its actions in the brain. Deletion of PPARγ in mouse brain, and specifically in the pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) neurons, results in resistance to diet-induced obesity. To study the mechanisms by which PPARγ in POMC neurons controls energy balance, we constructed a Cre-recombinase-dependent conditionally activatable transgene expressing either wild-type (WT) or dominant-negative (P467L) PPARγ and the tdTomato reporter. Inducible expression of both forms of PPARγ was validated in cells in culture, in liver of mice infected with an adenovirus expressing Cre-recombinase (AdCre), and in the brain of mice expressing Cre-recombinase either in all neurons (NESCre/PPARγ-P467L) or selectively in POMC neurons (POMCCre/PPARγ-P467L). Whereas POMCCre/PPARγ-P467L mice exhibited a normal pattern of weight gain when fed 60% high-fat diet, they exhibited increased weight gain and fat mass accumulation in response to a 10% fat isocaloric-matched control diet. POMCCre/PPARγ-P467L mice were leptin sensitive on control diet but became leptin resistant when fed 60% high-fat diet. There was no difference in body weight between POMCCre/PPARγ-WT mice and controls in response to 60% high-fat diet. However, POMCCre/PPARγ-WT, but not POMCCre/PPARγ-P467L, mice increased body weight in response to rosiglitazone, a PPARγ agonist. These observations support the concept that alterations in PPARγ-driven mechanisms in POMC neurons can play a role in the regulation of metabolic homeostasis under certain dietary conditions.


Circulation ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 127 (suppl_12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory A Hand ◽  
Robin P Shook ◽  
Jason R Jaggers ◽  
Amanda Paluch ◽  
Vivek K Prasad ◽  
...  

Conversion, utilization and storage of energy in the regulation of energy balance is poorly understood. These misconceptions arise from confusion related to energy balance and its impact on body weight and composition, and can bias the interpretation of findings that are important for the development of policies addressing the obesity epidemic. PURPOSE: Our purpose was to examine the regulation of interactions between total daily energy intake (TDEI) and energy expenditure (TDEE) in healthy adults. METHODS: Adults not limited by gender, race or ethnicity (n=430; aged 21 to 40; BMI of 20 to 35) participated in a battery of physiological, anthropomorphic, behavioral and psychological measurements that are associated with energy balance regulation. The primary components of energy balance regulation (TDEI and TDEE) were measured by 3 random 24-hour dietary recalls and SenseWear accelerometry, respectively. Body composition was determined by dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Absolute and relative resting metabolic rates (aRMR and rRMR) were determined through hooded indirect calorimetry. General linear modeling was used to examine the relationships of weight and body fatness with TDEI and macronutrient composition as well as the largest components of TDEE including aRMR, rRMR and physical activity energy expenditure (PAEE). In addition, data were compared between participants with a healthy body fat % (below 25; n=123) and obese (at or above 30%; n=241). RESULTS: All results were adjusted for age, gender and race. TDEE was positively associated (r=.47, p<.001) with TDEI. There was a positive association between aRMR (L/min) and weight (r=.743, p<.001). By contrast, rRMR (ml/kg/min) was inversely correlated with body weight (r= -.38; p<.001). TDEI was significantly higher in the lean group (2465±66 to 1878±42, p<.001) with no measureable differences in macronutrient percentages. The lean group had a higher TDEE and PAEE as compared to the obese group. CONCLUSIONS: There was a robust matching of TDEI and TDEE across weight and body composition ranges. Heavy people burned more calories than lighter people although the lighter individuals had a higher rRMR. The leaner group had a higher TDEI, reflecting a potential regulation based on the greater TDEE in this group. Further, the increased TDEE could be explained by the higher PAEE (approximately 500 kcal) in leaner individuals. These findings emphasize that energy expenditure is related to mass rather than body composition. The regulation of energy intake and body composition is multifactorial, with PAEE a significant determinant for energy storage. This study was funded through an unrestricted grant from The Coca-Cola Company.


Author(s):  
Georgia E. Hodes

In the late 20th century, the discovery that the immune system and central nervous system were not autonomous revolutionized exploration of the mechanisms by which stress contributes to immune disorders and immune regulation contributes to mental illness. There is increasing evidence of stress as integrated across the brain and body. The immune system acts in concert with the peripheral nervous system to shape the brain’s perception of the environment. The brain in turn communicates with the endocrine and immune systems to guide their responses to that environment. Examining the groundwork of mechanisms governing communication between the body and brain will hopefully provide a better understanding of the ontogeny and symptomology of some mood disorders.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 29-43
Author(s):  
Rohit Rastogi ◽  
Mamta Saxena ◽  
Devendra K. Chaturvedi ◽  
Mayank Gupta ◽  
Akshit Rajan Rastogi ◽  
...  

Our entire body, including the brain and nervous system, works with the help of various kinds of biological stuff which includes positively charged ions of elements like sodium, potassium, and calcium. The different body parts have different energy levels, and by measuring the energy level, we can also measure the fitness of an individual. Moreover, this energy and fitness are directly related to mental health and the signals being transmitted between the brain and other parts of the body. Various activities like walking, talking, eating, and thinking are performed with the help of these transmission signals. Another critical role played by them is that it helps in examining the mechanisms of cells present at various places in the human body and signaling the nervous system and brain if they are properly functioning or not. This manuscript is divided into two parts where, in the first part, it provides the introduction, background, and extensive literature survey on Kirlian experiments to measure the human's organ energy.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. Studenok ◽  
◽  
E .O. Shnurenko ◽  
V. O. Trokoz ◽  
V. I. Karposkyi ◽  
...  

The main role in maintaining the functioning of the body, its growth, and development belongs to protein. It is involved in the formation of the muscular skeleton and is s part of enzymes, neurotransmitters, hormones. The effect of the autonomic nervous system on total protein metabolism has not been sufficiently studied. It is known that the autonomic nervous system is a structure that is responsible for the homeostasis and stability of the whole organism. It participates in the regulation of the heart, endocrine and external secretion glands, gastrointestinal tract, excretory organs, and more. In our studies, it was found that in chickens of Cobb 500 strain with different tones of the autonomic nervous system during the growing period from the 35th to the 60th day, different contents of total protein, albumin, and globulins were observed and different body weights were recorded. Vagotonic chickens showed the lowest protein metabolism at the age of 35 and 45 days (P ˂ 0.05–0.001) compared with sympathicotonics and normotonics, which tended to increase between 35 and 60 days of rearing compared with other groups of birds, where the studied protein fractions on the contrary decreased. Correlations between total protein, albumin, and bird body weight had a high linear relationship in all groups of chickens (P ˂ 0.05–0.001) and a negative relationship between the 45th and 60th days of rearing in sympathicotonics and normotonics. In birds with a predominance of parasympathetic tone of the autonomic nervous system, this correlation maintained its direction with high reliability (P ˂ 0.05) between body weight and total protein on the 60th day of rearing.


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