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Athar F, Karmani M, Templeman N. Metabolic hormones are integral regulators of female reproductive health and function. Biosci Rep 2024; 44:BSR20231916. [PMID: 38131197 PMCID: PMC10830447 DOI: 10.1042/bsr20231916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The female reproductive system is strongly influenced by nutrition and energy balance. It is well known that food restriction or energy depletion can induce suppression of reproductive processes, while overnutrition is associated with reproductive dysfunction. However, the intricate mechanisms through which nutritional inputs and metabolic health are integrated into the coordination of reproduction are still being defined. In this review, we describe evidence for essential contributions by hormones that are responsive to food intake or fuel stores. Key metabolic hormones-including insulin, the incretins (glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide and glucagon-like peptide-1), growth hormone, ghrelin, leptin, and adiponectin-signal throughout the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis to support or suppress reproduction. We synthesize current knowledge on how these multifaceted hormones interact with the brain, pituitary, and ovaries to regulate functioning of the female reproductive system, incorporating in vitro and in vivo data from animal models and humans. Metabolic hormones are involved in orchestrating reproductive processes in healthy states, but some also play a significant role in the pathophysiology or treatment strategies of female reproductive disorders. Further understanding of the complex interrelationships between metabolic health and female reproductive function has important implications for improving women's health overall.
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Affiliation(s)
- Faria Athar
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 5C2, Canada
| | - Muskan Karmani
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 5C2, Canada
| | - Nicole M. Templeman
- Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8P 5C2, Canada
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2
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Boulet N, Briot A, Galitzky J, Bouloumié A. The Sexual Dimorphism of Human Adipose Depots. Biomedicines 2022; 10:2615. [PMID: 36289874 PMCID: PMC9599294 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10102615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2022] [Revised: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/13/2022] [Indexed: 08/21/2023] Open
Abstract
The amount and the distribution of body fat exhibit trajectories that are sex- and human species-specific and both are determinants for health. The enhanced accumulation of fat in the truncal part of the body as a risk factor for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases is well supported by epidemiological studies. In addition, a possible independent protective role of the gluteofemoral fat compartment and of the brown adipose tissue is emerging. The present narrative review summarizes the current knowledge on sexual dimorphism in fat depot amount and repartition and consequences on cardiometabolic and reproductive health. The drivers of the sex differences and fat depot repartition, considered to be the results of complex interactions between sex determination pathways determined by the sex chromosome composition, genetic variability, sex hormones and the environment, are discussed. Finally, the inter- and intra-depot heterogeneity in adipocytes and progenitors, emphasized recently by unbiased large-scale approaches, is highlighted.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Anne Bouloumié
- Inserm, Unité Mixte de Recherche (UMR) 1297, Team 1, Institut des Maladies Métaboliques et Cardiovasculaires (I2MC), Université de Toulouse, F-31432 Toulouse, France
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3
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Disruption of energy homeostasis by food restriction or high ambient temperature exposure affects gonadal function in male house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus). J Comp Physiol B 2020; 190:611-628. [PMID: 32712710 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-020-01295-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2019] [Revised: 06/18/2020] [Accepted: 07/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Reproductive success requires that individuals acquire sufficient energy resources. Restricting food availability or increasing energy expenditure (e.g., thermoregulation) inhibits reproductive development in multiple avian species, but the nature of the energy-related signal mediating this effect is unclear. To investigate this question, we examined reproductive and metabolic physiology in male house finches that either underwent moderate food restriction (FR) or were exposed to high temperature (HT), in which birds were held at a high, but not locally atypical, ambient temperature cycle (37.8 °C day, 29.4 °C night) compared to a control group (CT; 29.4 °C day, 21.1 °C night). We hypothesized that FR and HT inhibit reproductive development by lowering available metabolic fuel, in particular plasma glucose (GLU) and free fatty acids (FFA). Following FR for 4 weeks, finches lost body mass, had marginally higher plasma FFA, and experienced a 90% reduction in testis mass compared to CT birds. Four weeks of HT exposure resulted in reduced voluntary food consumption and muscle mass, as well as an 80% reduction in testis mass relative to CT birds. Both FR and HT birds expressed less testicular 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (17β-HSD) mRNA than controls but the expression of other testicular genes measured was unaffected by either treatment. Neither treatment significantly influenced plasma GLU. This study is among the first to demonstrate a negative effect of HT on reproductive development in a wild bird. Further studies are needed to clarify the role of metabolic mediators and their involvement under various conditions of energy availability and demand.
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Burroughs S, Schwindinger WF, Venditti JJ, Trautwein T, Dalsania A, Klingerman CM. Prokineticin-2 and ghrelin robustly influence the sexual and ingestive behaviors of female Syrian hamsters. Horm Behav 2018; 106:135-143. [PMID: 30189212 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2018.08.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2018] [Revised: 08/20/2018] [Accepted: 08/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Prokineticins are involved in many physiological processes including circadian rhythms, neurogenesis, angiogenesis, and cancer. Recently, they have been found to play a role in regulating food intake. Historically, proteins that increase feeding behavior in mammals decrease reproductive behavior to prevent pregnancy and lactation when food is scarce. In the current study, prokineticin-2 (PK2) had pronounced effects on reproductive and ingestive behaviors when given to female Syrian hamsters. Administration of PK2 prevented ingestive behaviors induced by food restriction, such as the amount of time spent with food and eating. Hamsters given PK2 preferred to engage in reproductive behaviors, including spending time with a male and lordosis. Furthermore, analysis of blood plasma revealed that changes to behavior persisted despite similar levels of des-acyl ghrelin (DAG) and reduced glucose concentrations in the blood. Additionally, administering 10 mg/kg of acyl ghrelin (AG) to a different cohort of animals significantly decreased the amount of time females spent with a potential mating partner, increased the amount of time females spent with food, decreased the duration of lordosis, and increased the duration of eating. Results from the current study support the need for further research investigating the reproductive and ingestive roles of PK2 and ghrelin.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Burroughs
- Department of Biological and Allied Health Sciences, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, 400 E. Second St. Bloomsburg, PA 17815, United States of America
| | - W F Schwindinger
- Department of Biological and Allied Health Sciences, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, 400 E. Second St. Bloomsburg, PA 17815, United States of America
| | - J J Venditti
- Department of Biological and Allied Health Sciences, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, 400 E. Second St. Bloomsburg, PA 17815, United States of America
| | - T Trautwein
- Department of Biological and Allied Health Sciences, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, 400 E. Second St. Bloomsburg, PA 17815, United States of America
| | - A Dalsania
- Department of Biological and Allied Health Sciences, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, 400 E. Second St. Bloomsburg, PA 17815, United States of America
| | - C M Klingerman
- Department of Biological and Allied Health Sciences, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, 400 E. Second St. Bloomsburg, PA 17815, United States of America.
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Hyland L, Rosenbaum S, Edwards A, Palacios D, Graham MD, Pfaus JG, Woodside B, Abizaid A. Central ghrelin receptor stimulation modulates sex motivation in male rats in a site dependent manner. Horm Behav 2018; 97:56-66. [PMID: 29080670 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Revised: 09/28/2017] [Accepted: 10/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Ghrelin, a hormone produced primarily by the stomach, has been associated with motivational processes that include reward-seeking behaviors. In male laboratory mice, elevation of ghrelin levels enhances some aspects of sexual motivation and behavior, whereas in other experiments with male mice, rats, and other species, ghrelin treatment or food deprivation decreases sexual motivation and/or behavior. The present tested the hypothesis that stimulation of ghrelin receptors in different brain regions have opposite effects on male sexual motivation and behavior. To do this we examined appetitive and consummatory sex behaviors of male rats with a truncated ghrelin receptor (FHH-GHSRm1/Mcwi), and that of their WT (FHH) littermates. We also examined the effects of ghrelin or the ghrelin antagonist D-Lys-GHRP6 delivered into the VTA or the MPOA on appetitive and consummatory sex behaviors in male Long Evans rats. Results demonstrate that rats with a truncated ghrelin receptor, or rats that are food deprived, show deficits in anticipatory sex. Furthermore, although ghrelin does not further stimulate sex anticipation in rats when infused into the VTA, intra-VTA infusions of D-Lys-GHRP6 into the VTA further decreases in sex anticipation in food deprived rats. In contrast, ghrelin delivery into the mPOA decreased sex anticipation compared to saline or D-Lys-GHRP6 infused rats. Overall, these data suggest that ghrelin receptor signalling is important for full expression of appetitive sex behaviors. Within the VTA, ghrelin may act to enhance sex motivation, while acting on the mPOA to decrease sex motivation and promote foraging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lindsay Hyland
- Department of Neuroscience, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Alexander Edwards
- Department of Neuroscience, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Daniel Palacios
- Centre for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - M Dean Graham
- Centre for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - James G Pfaus
- Centre for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Barbara Woodside
- Department of Neuroscience, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Centre for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Alfonso Abizaid
- Department of Neuroscience, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
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Schneider JE, Benton NA, Russo KA, Klingerman CM, Williams WP, Simberlund J, Abdulhay A, Brozek JM, Kriegsfeld LJ. RFamide-related Peptide-3 and the Trade-off between Reproductive and Ingestive Behavior. Integr Comp Biol 2017; 57:1225-1239. [PMID: 28985338 PMCID: PMC5886337 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icx097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Ingestive and sex behaviors are important for individual survival and reproductive success, but when environmental energy availability is limited, individuals of many different species make a trade-off, forfeiting sex for ingestive behavior. For example, food-deprived female Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) forego vaginal scent marking and lordosis (sex behaviors) in favor of foraging, hoarding, and eating food (ingestive behavior). Reproductive processes tend to be energetically costly, and individual survival requires homeostasis in metabolic energy. Thus, during energetic challenges, the chances of survival are enhanced by decreasing the energy expended on reproductive processes. The entire hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) system is inhibited by severe energetic challenges, but comparatively little is known about the effects of mild energetic challenges. We hypothesized that (1) a trade-off is made between sex and ingestive behavior even when the level of food restriction is insufficient to inhibit the HPG system; (2) mild energetic challenges force a trade-off between appetitive ingestive and sex behaviors, but not consummatory versions of the same behaviors; and (3) the trade-off is orchestrated by ovarian steroid modulation of RFamide-related peptide 3 (RFRP-3). In other species, RFRP-3, an ortholog of avian gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone, is implicated in control of behavior in response to energetic challenges and stressful stimuli. In support of our three hypotheses, there is a "dose-response" effect of food restriction and re-feeding on the activation of RFRP-3-immunoreactive cells in the dorsomedial hypothalamus and on appetitive behaviors (food hoarding and sexual motivation), but not on consummatory behaviors (food intake and lordosis), with no significant effect on circulating levels of estradiol or progesterone. The effect of food restriction on the activation of RFRP-3 cells is modulated at the time of estrus in gonadally-intact females and in ovariectomized females treated with progesterone alone or with estradiol plus progesterone. Intracerebral treatment with RFRP-3 results in significant decreases in sexual motivation and results in significant but small increases in food hoarding in hamsters fed ad libitum. These and other results are consistent with the idea that ovarian steroids and RFRP-3 are part of a system that orchestrates trade-offs in appetitive behaviors in environments where energy availability fluctuates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jill E Schneider
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA
| | - Noah A Benton
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA
| | - Kim A Russo
- Department of Psychology and The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Candice M Klingerman
- Department of Biological and Allied Health Sciences, Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg, PA 17815, USA
| | - Wilbur P Williams
- Department of Psychology and The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Jessica Simberlund
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA
| | - Amir Abdulhay
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA
| | - Jeremy M Brozek
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA
| | - Lance J Kriegsfeld
- Department of Psychology and The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
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Benton NA, Russo KA, Brozek JM, Andrews RJ, Kim VJ, Kriegsfeld LJ, Schneider JE. Food restriction-induced changes in motivation differ with stages of the estrous cycle and are closely linked to RFamide-related peptide-3 but not kisspeptin in Syrian hamsters. Physiol Behav 2017. [PMID: 28624479 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2017.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
We tested the hypothesis that the effects of food restriction on behavioral motivation are mediated by one or both of the RFamide peptides, RFamide-related peptide-3 (RFRP-3) and kisspeptin (Kp) in female Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus). Female hamsters fed ad libitum and given a choice between food and adult male hamsters are highly motivated to visit males instead of food on all four days of the estrous cycle, but after 8days of mild food restriction (75% of ad libitum intake) they shift their preference toward food every day of the estrous cycle until the day of estrus, when they shift their preference back toward the males. In support of a role for RFRP-3 in these behavioral changes, the preference for food and the activation of RFRP-3-immunoreactive (Ir) cells in the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) showed the same estrous cycle pattern in food-restricted females, but no association was observed between behavior and the activation of Kp cells in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus or preoptic area. Next, we tested the hypothesis that food-restriction-induced activation of RFRP-3-Ir cells is modulated by high levels of ovarian steroids at the time of estrus. In support of this idea, on nonestrous days, mild food restriction increased activation of RFRP-3-Ir cells, but failed to do so on the day of estrus even though this level of food restriction did not significantly decrease circulating concentrations of estradiol or progesterone. Furthermore, in ovariectomized females, food-restriction-induced increases in activation of RFRP-3-Ir cells were blocked by systemic treatment with progesterone alone, estradiol plus progesterone, but not estradiol alone. Central infusion with RFRP-3 in ad libitum-fed females significantly decreased sexual motivation and produced significant increases in 90-minute food hoarding, in support of the hypothesis that elevated central levels of RFRP-3 are sufficient to create the shift in behavioral motivation in females fed ad libitum. Together, these results are consistent with the hypothesis that high levels of ingestive motivation are promoted during the nonfertile phase of the estrous cycle by elevated activation of RFRP-3-Ir cells, and RFRP-3-Ir cellular activation is modulated by ovarian steroids around the time of estrus, thereby diverting attention away from food and increasing sexual motivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah A Benton
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015, United States
| | - Kim A Russo
- Department of Psychology and The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - Jeremy M Brozek
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015, United States
| | - Ryan J Andrews
- Department of Psychology and The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - Veronica J Kim
- Department of Psychology and The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - Lance J Kriegsfeld
- Department of Psychology and The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - Jill E Schneider
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015, United States.
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8
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Ebling FJP. Hypothalamic control of seasonal changes in food intake and body weight. Front Neuroendocrinol 2015; 37:97-107. [PMID: 25449796 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2014.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2014] [Revised: 10/15/2014] [Accepted: 10/17/2014] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Seasonal cycles of fattening and body weight reflecting changes in both food intake and energy expenditure are a core aspect of the biology of mammals that have evolved in temperate and arctic latitudes. Identifying the neuroendocrine mechanisms that underlie these cycles has provided new insights into the hypothalamic control of appetite and fuel oxidation. Surprisingly, seasonal cycles do not result from changes in the leptin-responsive and homeostatic pathways located in the mediobasal and lateral hypothalamus that regulate meal timing and compensatory responses to starvation or caloric restriction. Rather, they result from changes in tanycyte function, which locally regulates transport and metabolism of thyroid hormone and retinoic acid. These signals are crucial for the initial development of the brain, so it is hypothesized that seasonal neuroendocrine cycles reflect developmental mechanisms in the adult hypothalamus, manifest as changes in neurogenesis and plasticity of connections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francis J P Ebling
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham Medical School, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK.
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Carlton ED, Cooper CL, Demas GE. Metabolic stressors and signals differentially affect energy allocation between reproduction and immune function. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2014; 208:21-9. [PMID: 25125082 PMCID: PMC4253682 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2014.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2014] [Revised: 07/29/2014] [Accepted: 08/06/2014] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Most free-living animals have finite energy stores that they must allocate to different physiological and behavioral processes. In times of energetic stress, trade-offs in energy allocation among these processes may occur. The manifestation of trade-offs may depend on the source (e.g., glucose, lipids) and severity of energy limitation. In this study, we investigated energetic trade-offs between the reproductive and immune systems by experimentally limiting energy availability to female Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) with 2-deoxy-d-glucose, a compound that disrupts cellular utilization of glucose. We observed how glucoprivation at two levels of severity affected allocation to reproduction and immunity. Additionally, we treated a subset of these hamsters with leptin, an adipose hormone that provides a direct signal of available fat stores, in order to determine how increasing this signal of fat stores influences glucoprivation-induced trade-offs. We observed trade-offs between the reproductive and immune systems and that these trade-offs depended on the severity of energy limitation and exogenous leptin signaling. The majority of the animals experiencing mild glucoprivation entered anestrus, whereas leptin treatment restored estrous cycling in these animals. Surprisingly, virtually all animals experiencing more severe glucoprivation maintained normal estrous cycling throughout the experiment; however, exogenous leptin resulted in lower antibody production in this group. These data suggest that variation in these trade-offs may be mediated by shifts between glucose and fatty acid utilization. Collectively, the results of the present study highlight the context-dependent nature of these trade-offs, as trade-offs induced by the same metabolic stressor can manifest differently depending on its intensity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth D Carlton
- Department of Biology, Program in Neuroscience and Center for the Integrative Study of Animal Behavior, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA.
| | - Candace L Cooper
- Department of Biology, Claflin University, Orangeburg, SC 29115, USA
| | - Gregory E Demas
- Department of Biology, Program in Neuroscience and Center for the Integrative Study of Animal Behavior, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
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Feeding prepubescent gilts a high-fat diet induces molecular changes in the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal axis and predicts early timing of puberty. Nutrition 2014; 30:890-6. [DOI: 10.1016/j.nut.2013.12.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2013] [Revised: 12/05/2013] [Accepted: 12/25/2013] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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11
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Glazier DS. Is metabolic rate a universal ‘pacemaker’ for biological processes? Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2014; 90:377-407. [DOI: 10.1111/brv.12115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 218] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2013] [Revised: 04/16/2014] [Accepted: 04/17/2014] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
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Pazos P, Lima L, Diéguez C, García MC. Energy Balance Regulating Neuropeptides Are Expressed through Pregnancy and Regulated by Interleukin-6 Deficiency in Mouse Placenta. Int J Endocrinol 2014; 2014:537603. [PMID: 24744782 PMCID: PMC3972931 DOI: 10.1155/2014/537603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2013] [Revised: 01/21/2014] [Accepted: 02/02/2014] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
The placenta produces a number of signaling molecules including metabolic and reproductive hormones as well as several inflammatory mediators. Among them, Interleukin-6 (IL-6), a well-known immune and metabolic regulator, acts peripherally modulating metabolic function and centrally increasing energy expenditure and reducing body fat. IL-6 interacts with key hypothalamic neuropeptidergic systems controlling energy homeostasis such as those producing the orexigenic/anabolic: neuropeptide Y (NPY) and agouti-related peptide (AgRP) and anorectic/catabolic neuropeptides: proopiomelanocortin (POMC) and cocaine and amphetamine regulated transcript (CART). Human and rat placenta have been identified as source of these neuropeptides, but their expression and regulation in murine placental tissues remain unknown. Therefore, placental mRNA levels of IL-6, NPY, AgRP, POMC, and CART at different pregnancy stages (gestational days 13, 15, and 18) were analyzed by real time PCR, as were the effect of IL-6 deficiency (IL-6 knockout mice) on their placental expression. Our results showed that placenta-derived neuropeptides were regulated by gestational age and IL-6 throughout the second half of mouse pregnancy. These data suggest that IL-6 may participate in the fine tune control of energy balance during pregnancy by extending its action as a metabolic signal to the main organ at the fetomaternal interface: the placenta.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia Pazos
- Department of Physiology, Research Center of Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Avenida de Barcelona s/n, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), 15706 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- CIBER Fisiopatología Obesidad y Nutrición (CB06/03), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO), 15706 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Luis Lima
- Department of Physiology, Research Center of Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Avenida de Barcelona s/n, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), 15706 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Carlos Diéguez
- Department of Physiology, Research Center of Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Avenida de Barcelona s/n, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), 15706 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- CIBER Fisiopatología Obesidad y Nutrición (CB06/03), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO), 15706 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - María C. García
- Department of Physiology, Research Center of Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Avenida de Barcelona s/n, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), 15706 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- CIBER Fisiopatología Obesidad y Nutrición (CB06/03), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII), Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO), 15706 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
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Keen-Rhinehart E, Ondek K, Schneider JE. Neuroendocrine regulation of appetitive ingestive behavior. Front Neurosci 2013; 7:213. [PMID: 24298235 PMCID: PMC3828638 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2013.00213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2013] [Accepted: 10/25/2013] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Food availability in nature is often irregular, and famine is commonplace. Increased motivation to engage in ingestive behaviors increases the chance of survival, providing additional potential opportunities for reproduction. Because of the advantages conferred by entraining ingestive behavior to environmental conditions, neuroendocrine mechanisms regulating the motivation to acquire and ingest food have evolved to be responsive to exogenous (i.e., food stored for future consumption) and endogenous (i.e., body fat stores) fuel availability. Motivated behaviors like eating occur in two phases. The appetitive phase brings animals into contact with food (e.g., foraging, food hoarding), and the more reflexive consummatory phase results in ingestion (e.g., chewing, swallowing). Quantifiable appetitive behaviors are part of the natural ingestive behavioral repertoire of species such as hamsters and humans. This review summarizes current knowledge about neuroendocrine regulators of ingestive behavior, with an emphasis appetitive behavior. We will discuss hormonal regulators of appetitive ingestive behaviors, including the orexigenic hormone ghrelin, which potently stimulates foraging and food hoarding in Siberian hamsters. This section includes a discussion of the hormone leptin, its relation to endogenous fat stores, and its role in food deprivation-induced increases in appetitive ingestive behaviors. Next, we discuss how hormonal regulators interact with neurotransmitters involved in the regulation of ingestive behaviors, such as neuropeptide Y (NPY), agouti-related protein (AgRP) and α-melanocyte stimulating hormone (α-MSH), to regulate ingestive behavior. Finally, we discuss the potential impact that perinatal nutrient availability can have on the neuroendocrine regulation of ingestive behavior. Understanding the hormonal mechanisms that connect metabolic fuel availability to central appetite regulatory circuits should provide a better understanding of the neuroendocrine regulation of the motivation to engage in ingestive behavior.
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Schneider JE, Wise JD, Benton NA, Brozek JM, Keen-Rhinehart E. When do we eat? Ingestive behavior, survival, and reproductive success. Horm Behav 2013; 64:702-28. [PMID: 23911282 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2013.07.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2013] [Revised: 07/21/2013] [Accepted: 07/22/2013] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The neuroendocrinology of ingestive behavior is a topic central to human health, particularly in light of the prevalence of obesity, eating disorders, and diabetes. The study of food intake in laboratory rats and mice has yielded some useful hypotheses, but there are still many gaps in our knowledge. Ingestive behavior is more complex than the consummatory act of eating, and decisions about when and how much to eat usually take place in the context of potential mating partners, competitors, predators, and environmental fluctuations that are not present in the laboratory. We emphasize appetitive behaviors, actions that bring animals in contact with a goal object, precede consummatory behaviors, and provide a window into motivation. Appetitive ingestive behaviors are under the control of neural circuits and neuropeptide systems that control appetitive sex behaviors and differ from those that control consummatory ingestive behaviors. Decreases in the availability of oxidizable metabolic fuels enhance the stimulatory effects of peripheral hormones on appetitive ingestive behavior and the inhibitory effects on appetitive sex behavior, putting a new twist on the notion of leptin, insulin, and ghrelin "resistance." The ratio of hormone concentrations to the availability of oxidizable metabolic fuels may generate a critical signal that schedules conflicting behaviors, e.g., mate searching vs. foraging, food hoarding vs. courtship, and fat accumulation vs. parental care. In species representing every vertebrate taxa and even in some invertebrates, many putative "satiety" or "hunger" hormones function to schedule ingestive behavior in order to optimize reproductive success in environments where energy availability fluctuates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jill E Schneider
- Department of Biological Sciences, Lehigh University, 111 Research Drive, Bethlehem, PA 18015, USA
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Asarian L, Geary N. Sex differences in the physiology of eating. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2013; 305:R1215-67. [PMID: 23904103 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00446.2012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 338] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis function fundamentally affects the physiology of eating. We review sex differences in the physiological and pathophysiological controls of amounts eaten in rats, mice, monkeys, and humans. These controls result from interactions among genetic effects, organizational effects of reproductive hormones (i.e., permanent early developmental effects), and activational effects of these hormones (i.e., effects dependent on hormone levels). Male-female sex differences in the physiology of eating involve both organizational and activational effects of androgens and estrogens. An activational effect of estrogens decreases eating 1) during the periovulatory period of the ovarian cycle in rats, mice, monkeys, and women and 2) tonically between puberty and reproductive senescence or ovariectomy in rats and monkeys, sometimes in mice, and possibly in women. Estrogens acting on estrogen receptor-α (ERα) in the caudal medial nucleus of the solitary tract appear to mediate these effects in rats. Androgens, prolactin, and other reproductive hormones also affect eating in rats. Sex differences in eating are mediated by alterations in orosensory capacity and hedonics, gastric mechanoreception, ghrelin, CCK, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), glucagon, insulin, amylin, apolipoprotein A-IV, fatty-acid oxidation, and leptin. The control of eating by central neurochemical signaling via serotonin, MSH, neuropeptide Y, Agouti-related peptide (AgRP), melanin-concentrating hormone, and dopamine is modulated by HPG function. Finally, sex differences in the physiology of eating may contribute to human obesity, anorexia nervosa, and binge eating. The variety and physiological importance of what has been learned so far warrant intensifying basic, translational, and clinical research on sex differences in eating.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lori Asarian
- Institute of Veterinary Physiology and Center for Integrated Human Physiology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; and
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Stephens SBZ, Wallen K. Environmental and social influences on neuroendocrine puberty and behavior in macaques and other nonhuman primates. Horm Behav 2013; 64:226-39. [PMID: 23998667 PMCID: PMC3762264 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2013.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2012] [Revised: 03/20/2013] [Accepted: 05/03/2013] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
This article is part of a Special Issue "Puberty and Adolescence". Puberty is the developmental period when the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis is activated, following a juvenile quiescent period, and reproductive capacity matures. Although pubertal events occur in a consistent sequence, there is considerable variation between individuals in the onset and timing of pubertal events, with puberty onset occurring earlier in girls than in boys. Evidence in humans demonstrates that social and environmental context influences the timing of puberty onset and may account for some of the observed variation. This review analyzes the nonhuman primate literature, focusing primarily on rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), to examine the social and environmental influences on puberty onset, how these factors influence puberty in males and females, and to review the relationship between puberty onset of adult neuroendocrine function and sexual behavior. Social and environmental factors influence the timing of puberty onset and pubertal events in nonhuman primates, as in humans, and the influences of these factors differ for males and females. In nonhuman primates, gonadal hormones are not required for sexual behavior, but modulate the frequency of occurrence of behavior, with social context influencing the relationship between gonadal hormones and sexual behavior. Thus, the onset of sexual behavior is independent of neuroendocrine changes at puberty; however, there are distinct behavioral changes that occur at puberty, which are modulated by social context. Puberty is possibly the developmental period when hormonal modulation of sexual behavior is organized, and thus, when social context interacts with hormonal state to strongly influence the expression of sexual behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon B Z Stephens
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
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Kohl JV. Nutrient-dependent/pheromone-controlled adaptive evolution: a model. SOCIOAFFECTIVE NEUROSCIENCE & PSYCHOLOGY 2013; 3:20553. [PMID: 24693353 PMCID: PMC3960065 DOI: 10.3402/snp.v3i0.20553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2013] [Revised: 04/13/2013] [Accepted: 05/13/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The prenatal migration of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurosecretory neurons allows nutrients and human pheromones to alter GnRH pulsatility, which modulates the concurrent maturation of the neuroendocrine, reproductive, and central nervous systems, thus influencing the development of ingestive behavior, reproductive sexual behavior, and other behaviors. METHODS THIS MODEL DETAILS HOW CHEMICAL ECOLOGY DRIVES ADAPTIVE EVOLUTION VIA: (1) ecological niche construction, (2) social niche construction, (3) neurogenic niche construction, and (4) socio-cognitive niche construction. This model exemplifies the epigenetic effects of olfactory/pheromonal conditioning, which alters genetically predisposed, nutrient-dependent, hormone-driven mammalian behavior and choices for pheromones that control reproduction via their effects on luteinizing hormone (LH) and systems biology. RESULTS Nutrients are metabolized to pheromones that condition behavior in the same way that food odors condition behavior associated with food preferences. The epigenetic effects of olfactory/pheromonal input calibrate and standardize molecular mechanisms for genetically predisposed receptor-mediated changes in intracellular signaling and stochastic gene expression in GnRH neurosecretory neurons of brain tissue. For example, glucose and pheromones alter the hypothalamic secretion of GnRH and LH. A form of GnRH associated with sexual orientation in yeasts links control of the feedback loops and developmental processes required for nutrient acquisition, movement, reproduction, and the diversification of species from microbes to man. CONCLUSION An environmental drive evolved from that of nutrient ingestion in unicellular organisms to that of pheromone-controlled socialization in insects. In mammals, food odors and pheromones cause changes in hormones such as LH, which has developmental affects on pheromone-controlled sexual behavior in nutrient-dependent reproductively fit individuals across species of vertebrates.
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Hill JW, Alreja M, Elias CF. From precocious puberty to infertility: metabolic control of the reproductive function. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2013; 4:43. [PMID: 23565110 PMCID: PMC3613725 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2013.00043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2013] [Accepted: 03/16/2013] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer W. Hill
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of ToledoToledo, OH, USA
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of ToledoToledo, OH, USA
| | | | - Carol F. Elias
- Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, University of MichiganAnn Arbor, MI, USA
- *Correspondence:
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