Peripheral chemerin administration modulates hypothalamic control of feeding

Chemerin is a recently identified adipokine that is involved in the regulation of adipogenesis, energy metabolism, and inflammation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of chemerin on food intake, body weight and hypothalamic peptidergic and aminergic modulators which play a pivotal role in feeding regulation in rats. Male adult Wistar rats were intraperitoneally injected, daily for 17 days at 9.00 am, with either vehicle (saline; n=12) or chemerin (8 μg/kg; n=12) and (16 μg/kg; n=12). Food intake was recorded 24 h after each administration. Animals were sacrificed 24 h after the last injection. Total RNA was extracted from hypothalami and reverse transcribed to evaluate gene expression of agouti-related peptide (AgRP), neuropeptide Y (NPY), orexin-A, corticotrophin releasing hormone (CRH), pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) and cocaine and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART). Furthermore, we evaluated the effect of chemerin on dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin steady state concentrations in rat hypothalamus homogenate, and monoamine release from rat hypothalamic synaptosomes. Chemerin administration (8 and 16 μg/kg) decreased both food intake and body weight compared to vehicle, possibly associated with a significant increase in serotonin synthesis and release, in the hypothalamus. On the other hand, the pattern of gene expression following chemerin administration indicates a minor role played by chemerin as a peripheral appetite-regulating signal.