“This indicated that hypothalamic NPY signals prevent BAT thermogenesis by using inhibitory GABAergic inputs to sympathetic motor neurons,” study lead author Yoshiko Nakamura says. Retrograde and anterograde tracing with fluorescent dyes revealed which brain region provided the inhibitory GABAergic inputs to heat-producing motor neurons. “Tracing experiments showed that sympathetic motor neurons are directly innervated by GABAergic inputs from reticular nuclei in the medulla oblongata,” corresponding author Kazuhiro Nakamura explains, “selective activation of these GABAergic reticular neurons inhibits BAT thermogenesis.” The researchers’ further findings showed that GABAergic inputs from medullary reticular neurons are involved in hypothalamic NPY-mediated inhibition of heat production in BAT. This hunger response circuit probably explains why anorexic individuals suffer from hypothermia. Interestingly, stimulation of these medullary reticular neurons prompted rats to begin chewing and feeding. This effect was similar to injecting NPY into the hypothalamus, suggesting that hypothalamic NPY signaling activates reticular neurons in the medulla oblongata to promote feeding and mastication during the hunger response. Abnormal activation of these neurons under non-starved conditions may contribute to obesity. Understanding these mechanisms could lead to development of more effective treatments for obesity.

The novel brain circuit for hunger responses is illustrated in the accompanying figure.

http://en.nagoya-u.ac.jp/research/activities/news/2017/01/new-insights-into-brain-circuit-for-hunger-responses-during-starvation.html

Full bibliographic information

The article, “Medullary Reticular Neurons Mediate Neuropeptide Y-Induced Metabolic Inhibition and Mastication” was published in Cell Metabolism at DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2016.12.002

IM     The empty stomach releases the hormone called ghrelin. By receiving ghrelin, the hypothalamus in the brain senses hunger and produces "hunger signaling" through the action of neuropeptide Y (NPY). The hunger signaling activates neurons in the reticular formation of the medulla oblongata, which then inhibit sympathetic output to reduce metabolic heat production and simultaneously provide masticatory motor rhythm to facilitate feeding.