title: Hormonal regulation of the hypothalamic melanocortin system.
abstract: Regulation of energy homeostasis is fundamental for life. In animal species and humans, the Central Nervous System (CNS) plays a critical role in such regulation by integrating peripheral signals and modulating behavior and the activity of peripheral organs. A precise interplay between CNS and peripheral signals is necessary for the regulation of food intake and energy expenditure in the maintenance of energy balance. Within the CNS, the hypothalamus is a critical center for monitoring, processing and responding to peripheral signals, including hormones such as ghrelin, leptin, and insulin. Once in the brain, peripheral signals regulate neuronal systems involved in the modulation of energy homeostasis. The main hypothalamic neuronal circuit in the regulation of energy metabolism is the melanocortin system. This review will give a summary of the most recent discoveries on the hormonal regulation of the hypothalamic melanocortin system in the control of energy homeostasis.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA ; Program in Cell Signaling and Neurobiology of Metabolism, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Jung D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Departments of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA ; Program in Cell Signaling and Neurobiology of Metabolism, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Leyva
authors.affiliation: Departments of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA ; Program in Cell Signaling and Neurobiology of Metabolism, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA ; Department of Neurobiology, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA ; Section of Comparative Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA.
authors.forename: Sabrina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Diano
keywords: agouti-related peptide (AgRP); arcuate nucleus; hormones; hypothalamic melanocortin system; neuropeptide Y (NPY); obesity; pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC)