To identify the specific hypothalamic sites in which
leptin acts to decrease energy intake and/or increase energy expenditure, recombinant adeno-associated virus vector-encoding
leptin was microinjected bilaterally into one of four hypothalamic sites in female rats.
Leptin transgene expression in the ventromedial nucleus and paraventricular nucleus induced comparable decreases in daily food intake (FI; 18-20%) and
body weight (BW; 26-29%), accompanied by drastic reductions in serum
leptin (81-97%),
insulin (92-93%),
free fatty acids (35-36%), and normoglycemia.
Leptin transgene expression in the arcuate nucleus (
ARC) decreased BW gain (21%) and FI (11%) to a lesser range, but the metabolic
hormones were suppressed to the same extent.
Leptin transgene expression in the medial preoptic area (MPOA) decreased BW and metabolic
hormones without decreasing FI. Finally,
leptin transgene expression in all four sites augmented serum
ghrelin and thermogenic energy expenditure, as shown by uncoupling protein-1
mRNA expression in brown adipose tissue.
Proopiomelanocortin gene expression in the
ARC was up-regulated by
leptin expression in all four sites, but
neuropeptide Y gene expression in the
ARC was suppressed by
leptin transgene expression in the
ARC but not in the MPOA. Thus, whereas
leptin expression in the paraventricular nucleus, ventromedial nucleus, or
ARC suppresses adiposity and
insulin by decreasing energy intake and increasing energy expenditure, in the MPOA it suppresses these variables by increasing energy expenditure alone.