Although a woman’s ovaries produce the most oestrogen, various types of oestrogen are also synthesised throughout different tissues in the body, including the brain’s neurons. New research in The FEBS Journal indicates that such neuro-oestrogens help suppress appetite.
Knowing that the enzyme aromatase is important for the production of oestrogens, investigators depleted or knocked out the gene encoding aromatase in mice, so that the animals were unable to synthesise oestrogens in a systemic or body-wide manner. These mice demonstrated increased food intake and body weight compared with their aromatase-expressing counterparts. Restoring aromatase expression specifically in the brain reduced food intake and increased sensitivity to leptin, the “fullness” hormone, confirming that neuro-oestrogens can influence appetite.
To further investigate the role of neuro-oestrogens independently of ovarian oestrogen involvement, the researchers removed the ovaries in female mice. The brain’s hypothalamus (the central hub for appetite signals) in ovariectomised mice showed increased expression of the gene encoding aromatase, and these mice decreased their food intake.
“Our results imply that neuro-oestrogens likely contribute to appetite regulation and may be relevant for body weight reduction” the authors wrote.
Source: Wiley
