Central Mechanisms Regulating Acute Leptin and Insulin Signaling

描述（由申请人提供）：肥胖已成为本世纪最紧迫的公共卫生问题之一。不幸的是，解决肥胖的高发问题被证明是极其困难的。瘦素是一种脂肪细胞衍生的激素，作用于下丘脑神经元抑制食欲和调节能量消耗，最初的发现为肥胖治疗带来了希望。然而，肥胖人群瘦素抵抗的发展阻碍了其治疗用途，这一现象的精确分子机制尚不完全清楚。同样，糖尿病的特点是胰岛素缺乏或抵抗。有趣的是，内质网应激与肥胖有关，并与外周组织和大脑的瘦素和胰岛素抵抗有关。最近的证据

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Obesity has become one of the most pressing public health issues of the current century. Unfortunately, tackling the high incidence of obesity is proving to be extremely difficult. The initial discovery of leptin, an adipocyte-derived hormone that acts on hypothalamic neurons to suppress appetite and regulate energy expenditure, raised hope for an obesity therapy. However, its therapeutic use is hampered by the development of leptin resistance in obese humans, a phenomenon for which the precise molecular mechanisms are not fully understood. Similarly, diabetes mellitus is characterized by insulin deficiency or resistance. Interestingly, endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is associated with obesity and implicated in leptin and insulin resistance in peripheral tissues and in the brain. Recent evidence suggests that a key site involved this stress response is the hypothalamus. Notably, arcuate POMC and NPY/AgRP neurons are key targets of leptin and insulin action. Moreover, normal melanocortin signaling is required for normal food intake, body weight, and euglycemia. Thus we hypothesize arcuate POMC and NPY/AgRP neurons are involved in this hypothalamic stress response. In the current proposal, we will extend prior observations. We will identify cellular mechanisms through which ER stress induces acute leptin and insulin resistance. We will also determine a role for ER stress in identified hypothalamic neurons to regulate metabolism.