Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptors in nucleus accumbens affect food intake

J Neurosci. 2011 Oct 12;31(41):14453-7. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3262-11.2011.

Abstract

Central glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor (GLP-1R) stimulation suppresses food intake, and hindbrain GLP-1 neurons project to numerous feeding-relevant brain regions. One such region is the nucleus accumbens (NAc), which plays a role in reward and motivated behavior. Using immunohistochemical and retrograde tracing techniques in rats, we identified a robust projection from GLP-1 neurons in the nucleus of the solitary tract to the NAc. We hypothesized that activation of NAc GLP-1Rs suppresses feeding. When injected into the NAc core of rats at doses subthreshold for effect when administered to the lateral ventricle, GLP-1 significantly reduced food intake relative to vehicle at 1, 2, and 24 h posttreatment. The same doses had no effect when injected into the NAc shell. NAc core treatment with ventricle-subthreshold doses of the GLP-1R antagonist exendin (9-39) caused significant hyperphagia at 2 h posttreatment, suggesting that endogenous stimulation of NAc core GLP-1Rs plays a role in limiting food intake. It has been suggested that GLP-1 can cause nausea, but we found that NAc core administration of GLP-1 did not cause a conditioned taste aversion to saccharin, suggesting that the anorexic effect of NAc core GLP-1 is not caused by malaise. Finally, we observed that NAc core injection of GLP-1 significantly increased c-Fos expression in the NAc core. We conclude that that GLP-1Rs in the NAc play a physiologic role in food intake control, and suggest that the GLP-1 projection to NAc core may link satiation signal processing in the hindbrain with forebrain processing of food reward.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Avoidance Learning / drug effects
  • Conditioning, Psychological / drug effects
  • Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
  • Eating / drug effects
  • Eating / physiology*
  • Gene Expression Regulation / drug effects
  • Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 / metabolism
  • Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 / pharmacology
  • Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor
  • Injections, Intraventricular / methods
  • Male
  • Nucleus Accumbens / drug effects
  • Nucleus Accumbens / metabolism*
  • Peptide Fragments / pharmacology
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / metabolism
  • Rats
  • Rats, Wistar
  • Receptors, Glucagon / antagonists & inhibitors
  • Receptors, Glucagon / physiology*
  • Saccharin / administration & dosage
  • Stilbamidines
  • Sweetening Agents / administration & dosage
  • Taste / drug effects
  • Time Factors

Substances

  • 2-hydroxy-4,4'-diamidinostilbene, methanesulfonate salt
  • Glp1r protein, rat
  • Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor
  • Peptide Fragments
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos
  • Receptors, Glucagon
  • Stilbamidines
  • Sweetening Agents
  • exendin (9-39)
  • Glucagon-Like Peptide 1
  • Saccharin