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© 2016 Okamoto et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

How the hypothalamus transmits hunger information to other brain regions to govern whole brain function to orchestrate feeding behavior has remained largely unknown. Our present study suggests the importance of a recently found lateral hypothalamic neuropeptide, QRFP, in this signaling. Qrfp-/- mice were hypophagic and lean, and exhibited increased anxiety-like behavior, and were hypoactive in novel circumstances as compared with wild type littermates. They also showed decreased wakefulness time in the early hours of the dark period. Histological studies suggested that QRFP neurons receive rich innervations from neurons in the arcuate nucleus which is a primary region for sensing the body’s metabolic state by detecting levels of leptin, ghrelin and glucose. These observations suggest that QRFP is an important mediator that acts as a downstream mediator of the arcuate nucleus and regulates feeding behavior, mood, wakefulness and activity.

Details

Title
QRFP-Deficient Mice Are Hypophagic, Lean, Hypoactive and Exhibit Increased Anxiety-Like Behavior
Author
Okamoto, Kitaro; Yamasaki, Miwako; Takao, Keizo; Soya, Shingo; Iwasaki, Monica; Sasaki, Koh; Magoori, Kenta; Sakakibara, Iori; Miyakawa, Tsuyoshi; Mieda, Michihiro; Watanabe, Masahiko; Sakai, Juro; Yanagisawa, Masashi; Sakurai, Takeshi
First page
e0164716
Section
Research Article
Publication year
2016
Publication date
Nov 2016
Publisher
Public Library of Science
e-ISSN
19326203
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
1838507870
Copyright
© 2016 Okamoto et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.