Maintaining
a healthy body weight may be difficult for many people, but it's reassuring to
know that our brains and bodies are wired to work together to do just that—in
essence, to achieve a phenomenon known as energy balance, a tight matching
between the number of calories consumed versus those expended. This careful
balance results from a complex interchange of neurobiological crosstalk within
regions of the brain's hypothalamus, and when this "conversation"
goes awry, obesity or anorexia can result.
Given the
seriousness of these conditions, it's unfortunate that little is known about
the details of this complex interchange. Now research led by investigators at
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) provides new insights that help
bring order to this complexity. Described in the October 26 issue of the
journal Cell, the findings demonstrate how the GABA neurotransmitter
selectively drives energy expenditure, and importantly, also help explain the
neurocircuitry underlying the fat-burning properties of brown fat.
journal
reference (abstract free): Cell >>