Previous research has shown a correlation between obesity and mental disorders such as depression and anxiety. Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine are providing new revelations into identifying and characterizing a novel neural circuit that mediates the reciprocal control of feeding and psychological states in mouse models.
Mice are fed a high-fat diet not only became obese but also anxious and depressed, a condition mediated by a defective brain circuit. When the researchers genetically or pharmacologically corrected specific disruptions, the mice became less anxious and depressed and eventually would lose excess body weight.
"Reports indicate that 43% of adults with depression are obese and that adults with mental illness are more likely to develop obesity than those who are mentally healthy," said corresponding author Dr. Qi Wu, of Baylor's Children's Nutrition Research Center. "Factors such as hormonal dysregulation, genetic deficiency and inflammation have been proposed to be involved in the connection between obesity and mental disorders. Here we provide evidence that supports the involvement of a neural component."
The researchers discovered that normal mice had two groups of brain cells, dBNST and AgRP neurons located in separate brain areas, forming a circuit or connection to each other by extending cellular projections. The newly discovered circuit was malfunctioning in mice that were obese and depressed.