title: Lateral hypothalamic NMDA receptors and glutamate as physiological mediators of eating and weight control.
abstract: To determine whether endogenous lateral hypothalamic (LH) glutamate and its N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors might participate in the stimulation of natural eating, LH injection of the NMDA antagonist D-(-)-2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid (D-AP5) was tested in adult male rats for suppressive actions on feeding elicited by 1) NMDA, kainic acid or D, L-alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole (AMPA) injected into the LH; 2) food deprivation; and 3) the onset of the nocturnal period. D-AP5 (10-100 nmol) reduced by 72-90% the approximately 10-g eating response elicited by NMDA (10 nmol) without affecting the quantitatively similar eating responses elicited by kainic acid (1.0 nmol) or AMPA (1.0 nmol). This treatment also suppressed deprivation-induced eating by as much as 61% and nocturnal eating by as much as 40%. To determine its long-term effects, D-AP5 (50 nmol) was injected bilaterally into the LH twice a day for 8 consecutive days. This treatment caused up to 65% reductions in daily food intake and body weight loss of up to 13 g/day. These findings, showing behaviorally selective suppressions of eating and body weight by D-AP5, argue that endogenous LH glutamate acts to regulate natural eating and body weight and that NMDA receptors participate in these functions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, University of California, Riverside 92521, USA.
authors.forename: B G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Stanley
authors.forename: V L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Willett
authors.forename: H W
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Donias
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Dee
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Duva
mesh_terms: D015763:2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight / Q000502:physiology*; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D004435:Eating / Q000502:physiology*; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D005508:Food Deprivation / Q000502:physiology; D018698:Glutamic Acid / Q000502:physiology*; D007026:Hypothalamic Area, Lateral / Q000378:metabolism*; D007608:Kainic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D016202:N-Methylaspartate / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors; D018350:alpha-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; D018698:Glutamic Acid; D016202:N-Methylaspartate; D015763:2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate; D018350:alpha-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic Acid; D007608:Kainic Acid