Topic: LepRLH neurons

Mammalian reproduction is highly energy intensive, and requires an animal to prioritize feeding or sociosexual interaction, depending on need and opportunity. We have recently shown that two leptin-sensitive populations – leptin receptor-expressing (LepRLH) and neurotensin-expressing (NtsLH) neurons of the lateral hypothalamus – act in a complementary manner to enable resistance to hunger and gate the pursuit of social needs (Petzold et al., Cell Metab 2023).Currently, using single-cell Ca2+ imaging in freely moving mice, we found that LepRLH neurons not only preferentially encoded conspecific

A reduction of food intake – and concurrent loss of body weight – in combination with physical hyperactivity are main symptoms of the eating disorder anorexia nervosa. Continuous loss of fat mass results in hypoleptinemia, which initiates multiple starvation-related adaptive functions. Although leptin administration showed beneficial effects in treatment of symptoms of anorexia nervosa, including anxiety, neuronal mechanisms of possible anxiety-relieving action of leptin are not known.Here, combining calcium imaging and opto- or chemogenetics in freely behaving mice, we investigated functions