Stress affects eating behaviour in rodents and humans, suggesting that the regulation of energy balance and the stress response are coupled physiological processes. Neuropeptide Y (NPY) and agouti-related protein (AgRP) are potent food-stimulating neuropeptides that are highly co-localised in arcuate nucleus neurons of the hypothalamus. Recent studies have shown that NPY and AgRP mRNA levels in...

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is characterized by a sleep-related death in a seemingly healthy infant. Previously, we reported abnormalities in the serotonergic (5-HT) system of the medulla in SIDS cases in 2 independent datasets, including in the Northern Plains American Indians. The medullary 5-HT system is composed of 5-HT neurons in the raphé, extra-raphé, and arcuate nucleus at the v...

Dr Dave Morgan, email [email protected] LH, l t ral hypothalamus The increase in obesity and its associated complications of diabetes, heart disease and hypertension is one of the greatest health problems facing the Western world. An understanding of the mechanisms regulating food intake, energy expenditure and energy balance is important for combating this epidemic. The hypothalamus is the cru...

Ample animal studies demonstrate that neuropeptides NPY and α-MSH expressed in Arcuate Nucleus and Nucleus of the Tractus Solitarius, modulate glucose homeostasis and food intake. In contrast is the absence of data validating these observations for human disease. Here we compare the post mortem immunoreactivity of the metabolic neuropeptides NPY, αMSH and VGF in the infundibular nucleus, and br...