Research: Appetite and Brain Cells

Research - Boggle LettersResearch - Boggle Letters

For the first time, the brain cells that control appetite have been identified.  

Brain
Brain

Research have identified the cells and signal that cause a feeling of satiety or fullness.  So what does this mean?  This finding thing means that we have found the cause of satiety.  Dieting could be revolutionized by these findings because we finally have identified the key brain cells which control our appetite.  

A new study from 2017 was published in Molecular Metabolism​[1]​.   The researchers identified for the first time that tanycytes were the cells that detect nutrients in food tell the brain directly about the food we have eaten, and promote satiety.  The tanycytes are the cells and they are located in the hypothalamus.  According to the new research, tanycytes in the brain respond to amino acids found in foods and promote satiety.  The two amino acids that react most with tanycytes are arginine and lysine.  These amino acids are found in high concentrations in such foods as almonds, apricots, avocados, lentils, pork shoulder, beef sirloin steak, and chicken.  Eating those foods would activate the tanycytes and make you feel less hungry quicker.  

The bottom line:  This discovery opens up new possibilities for creating more effective diets and even future treatments to suppress your appetite with particular foods and amino acids.  Much more research is needed.  

Footnotes
[1]Lazutkaite et al., “Amino Acid Sensing in Hypothalamic Tanycytes via Umami Taste Receptors.”

Reference:

  1. Lazutkaite, Greta, Alice Soldà, Kristina Lossow, Wolfgang Meyerhof, and Nicholas Dale. “Amino Acid Sensing in Hypothalamic Tanycytes via Umami Taste Receptors.” Molecular Metabolism, September 2017. doi: 10.1016/j.molmet.2017.08.015
 

About the Author

ChuckH
I am a family physician who has served in the US Army. In 2016, I found myself overweight, out of shape, and unhealthy, so I made a change to improve my health. This blog is the chronology of my path to better health and what I have learned along the way.

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