Article
Licensed
Unlicensed Requires Authentication

Leptin and the brain

  • EMAIL logo and
Published/Copyright: August 19, 2011
Hormone Molecular Biology and Clinical Investigation
From the journal Hormone Molecular Biology and Clinical Investigation Volume 7 Issue 2

Abstract

Leptin, which comes from the Greek root leptos meaning thin, has been the focus of intense investigation since its discovery in 1994. This hormone belongs to the cytokine family and is produced by adipocytes and circulates in proportion to fat mass, thus serving as a satiety signal and informing central metabolic control centers as to the status of peripheral energy stores. However, it participates in numerous other functions both peripherally and centrally, as indicated by the wide distribution of its various receptor isoforms. Leptin is involved in brain development, most notably in development of hypothalamic centers that control metabolism, but also in other brain areas. It acts as a nutritional cue to indicate adequacy of energy stores for pubertal development and reproductive capacity. The effects of this hormone on behavior and cognition are less well studied, but it clearly is involved in specific aspects of these physiological phenomena. As obesity is a major health problem in many areas of the world, the search for pharmacological treatments to decrease appetite and increase energy expenditure is intense. Understanding the mechanisms of actions of all physiological effects of this hormone is of great interest in the pursuit of such treatment.

Keywords: behavior, brain development; memory; metabolism; synaptic plasticity
Corresponding author: Julie A. Chowen, Department of Endocrinology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Avenida Menéndez Pelayo 65, 28009 Madrid, Spain Phone/Fax: +34 91 503 5939
Received: 2011-6-1
Accepted: 2011-7-13
Published Online: 2011-08-19
Published in Print: 2011-10-01

©2011 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin Boston

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Editorial
  2. Hormones and the brain
  3. Review Articles
  4. Corticosteroid receptor signalling modes and stress adaptation in the brain
  5. Regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis by neuropeptides
  6. Effect of growth hormone and melatonin on the brain: from molecular mechanisms to structural changes
  7. Leptin and the brain
  8. Regulation of synaptic plasticity by hippocampus synthesized estradiol
https://doi.org/10.1515/HMBCI.2011.113
Keywords for this article
behavior, brain development; memory; metabolism; synaptic plasticity

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Editorial
  2. Hormones and the brain
  3. Review Articles
  4. Corticosteroid receptor signalling modes and stress adaptation in the brain
  5. Regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis by neuropeptides
  6. Effect of growth hormone and melatonin on the brain: from molecular mechanisms to structural changes
  7. Leptin and the brain
  8. Regulation of synaptic plasticity by hippocampus synthesized estradiol
Downloaded on 9.4.2026 from https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/HMBCI.2011.113/html
Scroll to top button