Journal
NEUROSCIENCE LETTERS
Volume 471, Issue 2, Pages 83-88Publisher
ELSEVIER IRELAND LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2010.01.016
Keywords
Leptin; Medial preoptic area; Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3); Alpha adrenergic receptors; Mouse
Categories
Funding
- Marche Polytechnic University
- Italian Ministry of University [(PRIN 2007]
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Leptin binding to its functional receptor stimulates the Janus kinase-signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK-STAT) signalling pathway, finally resulting in nuclear translocation of the phosphorylated STAT3 (P-STAT3). Systemic treatment with leptin (3 mg/kg; intraperitoneal injection) induced the appearance of P-STAT3-immunoreactive cells in adult mouse preoptic area (POA). Here we show that the vast majority of leptin-responsive cells were located in medial POA (mPOA), followed by the median preoptic nucleus. Rare, scattered and weakly stained cells were found in ventromedial preoptic nucleus and lateral preoptic area. Co-localization studies disclosed that mPOA leptin-responsive cells were neurons, and that a large proportion expressed the (alpha(1A)- and/or alpha(2A)-adrenergic receptor (AR) isoforms. Although understanding the functional relevance of leptin-responsive POA neurons requires further investigation, the finding that they bear alpha-ARs suggests that they may be targeted by the ascending noradrenergic system, which densely innervates the mPOA, and thus be involved in thermoregulation, arousal and/or the sleep-wake cycle. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
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