Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0028754 (obesity)
 124,988 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The administration of monosodium-L-glutamate (MSG) during the neonatal period is known to result in central nervous system lesions in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus and the retina. Rodents so treated exhibit behavioral deficts and endocrinopathies including obesity, hypogonadism, hypothyroidism, pituitary atrophy, tail automutilation and diminished locomotor activity. Assessment of endocrine status revealed normal serum levels of glucagon, thyroid-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone, and diminished levels of thyroid hormones and growth hormone in MSG-treated rats. Prolactin levels were elevated in the glutamate-treated male rats. Within the brain hypothalamic levels of thyrotropin-releasing hormone, luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone, and somatostatin were unchanged. Measurement of neurotransmitters and neurotransmitter-related enzymes in individual hypothalamic nuclei derived from MSG-treated rats revealed normal levels of norepinephrine, serotonin and glutamic acid decarboxylase, but reduced levels of choline acetyltransferase and dopamine in the arcuate nucleus and median eminence. Histochemical methods for visualization of dopamine and acetylcholinesterase in the mediobasal hypothalamus confirmed these findings. The MSG-treated animals exhibited a normal diurnal rhythm of pineal serotonin N-acetyltransferase activity. These data indicate that the MSG-induced endocrine deficiency syndrome results at least partly from destruction of cholinergic and dopamingeric tuberoinfundibular systems in the hypothalamus.
 ...
PMID:Models of neuroendocrine regulation: use of monosodium glutamate as an investigational tool. 3 35

Twenty-one nondiabetic subjects, their weights ranging from 56 to 165 kg, received an infusion of glucose (420 mg/min), insulin (0.77 mU/kg/min), and somatostatin (500 microgram/h) for 150 min. A steady state level of plasma insulin and glucose was attained after 90 min. Endogenous insulin secretion determined by C-peptide measurement, and glucagon secretion remained suppressed throughout the period. With similar steady state levels of plasma insulin (SSPI) maintained in all subjects, the height of the steady state plasma glucose concentration (SSPG) was considered an index of total body sensitivity to insulin-mediated glucose uptake. A positive correlation between SSPG and the degree of obesity, as determined by the body mass index (BMI), was demonstrated (r = 0.70, P less than 0.001). No correlation was found between SSPI and BMI. The fasting plasma insulin concentration correlated with BMI (r = 0.82, P less than 0.0001) and SSPG (r = 0.80, P less than 0.0001). This method provides a simple safe measure of total body insulin resistance over a wide range of obesity and is independent of endogenous insulin secretion.
 ...
PMID:A simplified method using somatostatin to assess in vivo insulin resistance over a range of obesity. 48 47

The blood glucagon concentration (fasting and in insulin hypoglycemia) was determined by radioimmunoassay in diabetic patients, relatives of diabetic patients with a normal glucose tolerance test, patients with obesity and a group of normal weight subjects. The index of glucagon rise above the fasting level and glucagon release rate were estimated. In relatives of diabetic and obese patients the initial blood glucagon concentration did not differ from that of healthy subjects. However, during insulin hypoglycemia, glucagon secretion was significantly reduced, and in relatives of diabetic patients it also proved to be delayed. A comparison of glucagon and somatostatin changes in the above mentioned patients allows to suggest participation of the somatostatin mechanism in disorders of glucagon secretion.
 ...
PMID:Glucagon secretion in subjects with prediabetes, diabetes mellitus and obesity. 50 63

Animal models with genetic or experimentally produced (lesions of hypothalamus) obesities are numerous and unlikely to ever be reduced to a single pathophysiologic entity. However, obese animals have many similar traits in common. They are all hyperinsulinemic, an abnormality that occurs early in the development of these syndromes and appears to be of prime importance in producing most of the metabolic changes observed both in the early and late phases of the obesity syndromes. In all instances, obesity is an evolutional syndrome in which the early phase is different from the later one. The early phase is principally characterized by increased hepatic very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) output, increased adipose tissue lipogenesis and VLDL uptake, hence, increased fat accretion and fat cell size. These abnormalities are secondary to hyperinsulinemia and can be reversed toward normal by normalizing circulating insulin levels. The late phase is characterized by the continuation of the disorders of the early one plus a superimposed abnormality, the insulin resistance state, that is detectable particularly at the level of adipose and muscle tissues, and eventually brings about hyperglycemia. Insulin resistance is a multifactorial pathological condition that includes at least: (a) a decrease (more or less marked) in insulin binding to target tissues that is responsible for the decrease in tissue sensitivity to the hormone; (b) intracellular defects that are probably responsible for the decreased insulin responsiveness of target tissues. The origin of hyperinsulinemia in animal obesities is still ill-defined. Lesions of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) produce rapid and lasting hyperinsulinemia. Such lesions produce, in addition, increased secretion of insulin and glucagon and changes in pancreatic insulin, glucagon, and somatostatin content in subsequently perfused pancreases. The locus responsible for these effects is not defined and may actually involve a series of interrelated loci. Whatever the latter may be, one of the routes of CNS influence upon endocrine pancreas is the vagus nerve, although a humoral factor has also been claimed. The etiology of hyperinsulinemia in genetically obese animals is unknown. Genetic inheritance could bear primarily upon some hypothalamic or other CNS sites, with secondary alterations in the endocrine pancreas function, or primarily on the islets of Langerhans with possible alteration in the respective function of the A, B, and D cells with resulting excessive insulin secretion.
 ...
PMID:Hyperinsulinemia in obesity syndromes: its metabolic consequences and possible etiology. 72 39

Plasma concentrations of regulatory peptides were monitored in groups of obese and normal-weight subjects following modified sham feeding and a liquid fatty meal. Following modified sham feeding a significant increase in immunoreactive cholecystokinin (CCK) in plasma was recorded in both groups. In the obese subjects, however, the concentrations following sham feeding were significantly lower than in normal-weight subjects, and the initial part of the response was negative. Basal and modified sham feeding stimulated immunoreactive pancreatic polypeptide (PP) concentrations in plasma did not differ between the groups. After the liquid fatty meal plasma CCK concentrations increased similarly in both groups. In contrast immunoreactive neurotensin and somatostatin concentrations following the meal were lower in the obese group, and a changed concentration-time pattern for somatostatin was observed in the obese group. Postprandial concentrations of PP and immunoreactive gastrin were not different in the groups. The results indicate that the plasma concentration patterns of CCK, somatostatin and NT are disarranged in obesity. The changes may promote rapid propulsion and absorption of ingested food, and facilitate deposition of fat in adipose tissue in obesity and thus may be of pathophysiological importance.
 ...
PMID:Plasma concentrations of regulatory peptides in obesity following modified sham feeding (MSF) and a liquid test meal. 134 61

The Obese Zucker rat is a model of genetic obesity characterized by hyperphagia, hyperinsulinemia and other endocrine abnormalities. In order to elucidate pathogenetic mechanisms contributing to disturbed feeding behavior in these animals, the effect of food restriction on three hypothalamic neuropeptides involved in the control of food intake was studied. Eighteen male obese and 18 lean Zucker rats were randomly divided into two groups: half of the animals were food-restricted for 2 weeks, while the other half served as controls and were fed ad libitum. The levels of preproneuropeptide Y (preproNPY), preprocorticotropin releasing factor (preproCRF) and preprosomatostatin (preproSOM) mRNAs were determined using in situ hybridization technique. In addition, plasma insulin and corticosterone concentrations were analyzed. Food restriction significantly increased the expression of preproNPY mRNA in the arcuate nucleus in both Zucker phenotypes, while the expressions of preproCRF mRNA in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) and preproSOM mRNA in the periventricular nucleus (PeV) were not altered. The expression of preproNPY mRNA was significantly greater in control obese animals compared to control lean animals. Food restriction lowered plasma insulin levels, but did not change plasma corticosterone levels. It is concluded that food restriction specifically activates NPY gene transcription in the arcuate nucleus the response being similar in both Zucker phenotypes. The results suggest that orexigenic NPY plays a role in the adaptation to altered feeding status.
 ...
PMID:Hypothalamic neuropeptide expression after food restriction in Zucker rats: evidence of persistent neuropeptide Y gene activation. 136 27

Insulin is the principal regulator of hepatic insulin-like growth factor binding protein-1 (IGFBP-1) production, mediating the rapid decrease in plasma IGFBP-1 in response to nutritional intake. In this study, we defined IGFBP-1 regulation by insulin in upper and lower body obesity, conditions associated with insulin resistance and chronic hyperinsulinemia. Overnight postabsorptive IGFBP-1 levels in obese and nonobese women showed an inverse, nonlinear relationship with plasma insulin concentrations. Maximum suppression of IGFBP-1 was seen at 70-90 pmol/L plasma insulin. Both groups of obese women had mean fasting plasma insulin concentrations above this threshold level and, consequently, markedly suppressed IGFBP-1 levels. To assess the dynamics of insulin regulated IGFBP-1, 10 obese and 8 nonobese women were studied during sequential saline infusion (0-90 min), hyperinsulinemia (insulin infusion; 90-210 min) and hypoinsulinemia (somatostatin + GH infusion; 210-330 min). Insulin infusion rapidly decreased plasma IGFBP-1 levels in nonobese subjects (60% decrease in 2 h), but had little or no further suppressive effect in obese subjects. Complete insulin withdrawal resulted in a significant rise in plasma IGFBP-1 concentrations in all subjects, but the response was blunted in obese compared to nonobese groups. In contrast to plasma IGFBP-1, IGF-I concentrations did not vary during hyper- and hypoinsulinemic infusion periods and were not significantly different between groups. Basal GH levels were significantly higher in nonobese when compared to obese women, but did not change with infusions. In conclusion, low IGFBP-1 levels in obesity are related to elevated insulin levels which are, in turn, related to body fat distribution and insulin resistance. The chronically depressed levels of IGFBP-1 may promote IGF bioactivity as well as its feedback regulation of GH secretion, thus contributing to the metabolic and mitogenic consequences of obesity. In addition, our findings imply that hepatic insulin sensitivity in terms of IGFBP-1 production is preserved despite peripheral insulin resistance in obesity.
 ...
PMID:Insulin regulation of insulin-like growth factor binding protein-1 in obese and nonobese humans. 137

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is a powerful appetite stimulant, and hypothalamic concentrations rise after food deprivation and in experimental diabetes. Serotonergic drugs such as dexfenfluramine are inhibitors of feeding. We measured hyothalamic NPY and NPY mRNA, along with galanin, neurotensin, and somatostatin in chow-fed rats and in rats with dietary obesity, and examined the effect of dexfenfluramine on these peptides in this model. Sixty-five rats were fed a palatable diet (condensed milk, sucrose and chow) for 6 weeks, which produced significant weight gain compared to twenty fed standard chow (145.1 +/- 2.3 g vs. 113.4 +/- 3.2 g, p less than 0.001). Groups of animals were treated for 7 days or 28 days with dexfenfluramine (1.8 mg/kg/day) or saline intraperitoneally via miniosmotic pumps. Hypothalami were dissected into medial and lateral blocks, and NPY, galanin, neurotensin, and somatostatin were measured by radioimmunoassay. Neuropeptide Y mRNA was measured by Northern blotting. Hypothalamic NPY was significantly higher in the palatable diet group compared to chow-fed controls (medial hypothalamus: 86.6 +/- 7.6 vs. 65.7 +/- 4.0 pmol/g tissue, p less than 0.02, lateral hypothalamus 71.2 +/- 6.6 vs. 53.1 +/- 3.6 pmol/g tissue, p less than 0.05), but NPY mRNA was unchanged. Although dexfenfluramine was effective at reducing weight gain in the animals fed the palatable diet, this did not result in any changes in the hypothalamic neuropeptides measured. Neuropeptide Y may be of importance in diet-induced obesity but the weight loss produced by dexfenfluramine in such animals is not mediated by changes in hypothalamic NPY.
 ...
PMID:Dexfenfluramine treatment and hypothalamic neuropeptides in diet-induced obesity in rats. 138 31

Various facets of glucose, insulin, and lipid metabolism were compared in 76 normal volunteers--38 with and 38 without a family history of hypertension. The two groups were comparable in terms of age, gender distribution, and degree of obesity (both generalized and abdominal). Although the plasma glucose response to oral glucose was similar in both groups, glucose-stimulated insulin concentrations were significantly greater in volunteers with a family history of hypertension (P < .001). Furthermore, the steady state plasma glucose concentration during a constant infusion of glucose, insulin and somatostatin was significantly greater in subjects with a family history of hypertension (8.1 +/- 0.6 v 6.2 +/- 0.6 mmol/L, P < .001). Since the steady-state plasma insulin levels during the infusion were similar, these results indicate that normotensive individuals with a family history of hypertension are relatively insulin resistant. Finally, plasma very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) triglyceride and VLDL cholesterol were higher in those with a family history of hypertension, as was the ratio of total to high density lipoprotein cholesterol. Thus, normotensive individuals with a family history of high blood pressure are insulin resistant, hyperinsulinemic and dyslipidemic when compared to a matched group of healthy volunteers without a family history of hypertension.
 ...
PMID:Insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia, and dyslipidemia in nonobese individuals with a family history of hypertension. 141 31

A blunted growth hormone (GH) response to several stimuli, including growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH), has been shown in obesity. Arginine (ARG) has been demonstrated to potentiate the GHRH-induced GH increase in normal subjects, likely acting via inhibition of hypothalamic somatostatin release. To shed further light onto the mechanisms underlying the blunted GH secretion in obesity, we studied the effect of ARG (0.5 g/kg infused intravenously [IV] over 30 minutes) on both basal and GHRH (1 micron/kg IV)-stimulated GH secretion. Eight obese subjects (aged 26.4 +/- 3.9 years; body mass index, 39.0 +/- 1.9 kg/m2) and eight normal control volunteers (aged 27.0 +/- 1.7 years; body mass index, 22.3 +/- 0.5 kg/m2) were studied. In obese subjects, the GH response to both GHRH and ARG was lower (P less than .01 and P less than .002, respectively) than in controls. ARG potentiated the GH response to GHRH in obese patients (P less than .0003). However, in these patients, the GH secretion elicited by GHRH, even when coadministered with ARG, persisted at reduced levels (P less than .005) when compared with controls. Basal insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels did not significantly differ in obese subjects and in normal subjects (161.1 +/- 37.0 v 181.0 +/- 12.8 micrograms/L). In conclusion, ARG enhances the blunted GHRH-induced GH increase in obese patients, but the GH responses to ARG alone and to ARG + GHRH persist at lower levels than in normals. Thus, our results suggest the existence of a reduced pituitary GH pool in obesity.
 ...
PMID:Arginine potentiates but does not restore the blunted growth hormone response to growth hormone-releasing hormone in obesity. 158 39


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next >>