title: Chronic intracerebroventricular injection of TLQP-21 prevents high fat diet induced weight gain in fast weight-gaining mice.
abstract: The vgf gene regulates energy homeostasis and the VGF-derived peptide TLQP-21 centrally exerts catabolic effects in mice and hamsters. Here, we investigate the effect of chronic intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of TLQP-21 in mice fed high fat diet (HFD). Fast weight-gaining mice injected with the peptide or cerebrospinal fluid were selected for physiological, endocrine, and molecular analysis. TLQP-21 selectively inhibited the increase in body weight and epididymal white adipose tissue (eWAT) weight induced by HFD in control animals despite both groups having a similar degree of hyperphagia. TLQP-21 normalized the increase in leptin and decrease in ghrelin while increasing epinephrine and epinephrine/norepinephrine ratio when compared to values in controls. Finally, HFD-TLQP-21 mice showed a selective increase of eWAT beta3-adrenergic receptor mRNA. Peroxisome-proliferator-activated-receptor-delta and hormone-sensing-lipase mRNA were also upregulated. In conclusion, chronic icv infusion of TLQP-21 prevented the early phase of diet-induced obesity despite overfeeding. These effects were paralleled by activation of catabolic pathways within the eWAT. Our results further support a role for TLQP-21 as a catabolic neuropeptide.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Neuroscience, CNR, Via del Fosso di Fiorano, 64/65, 00143, Rome, Italy, alessandro.bartolomucci@unipr.it.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bartolomucci
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bresciani
authors.forename: Ilaria
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Bulgarelli
authors.forename: Antonello E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Rigamonti
authors.forename: Tiziana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pascucci
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Levi
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Possenti
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Torsello
authors.forename: Vittorio
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Locatelli
authors.forename: Eugenio E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Muller
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moles