Naturwissenschaften
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Auflistung Naturwissenschaften nach Instituten/Kliniken "Institut für Experimentelle Endokrinologie"
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Item Aparecium: Revealing the role of the zona incerta in central thyroid hormone action(2025) Maier, JuliaThe importance of thyroid hormones (THs) for regulation of body temperature and energy metabolism as well as brain functions such as mood is well established. This is most evident in hypo- or hyperthyroidism, which have severe consequences on these parameters. THs exert their effects via thyroid hormone receptors α (TRα) and β (TRβ). Similar to altered ligand availability, mutations in these receptors lead to several deficits, such as defaults in neuronal development and regulation of body temperature, as well as psychomotor alterations. However, it often remains unknown whether defects are caused by TH actions directly on tissue level or centrally in the brain, and in the latter case, which brain regions mediate the central effects of THs. To address this question, PET/CT scans of mice undergoing treatment with T3 were conducted and showed activation of the Zona Incerta (ZI), a region of the subthalamus, indicating its role in mediating effects of THs. To further investigate the effect of THs in the ZI, TH signalling was inhibited by introducing a dominant-negative TRα1 via adeno-associated virus (AAV) injection into the ZI. In a separate set up, inhibition was specific to dopaminergic neurons by injecting the AAVs into tyrosine hydroxylase-Cre mice. Analysing these mice revealed that inhibited TH signalling in the ZI caused an increase in basal metabolic rate (BMR) with increased fasting weight loss without affecting body temperature. In addition, it resulted in a chronic stress-like state, in which serum corticosterone was elevated, and a partial anxiety phenotype was present, as habituation to stressful situations was impaired. However, none of these effects were observed in the conditional model, demonstrating that they were not mediated by dopaminergic neurons. Taken together, the study identifies a new brain region for central actions of THs, the ZI, and implicate it as a key brain region in TH-meditated control of behaviour and energy metabolism.Item BAT, can you feel the stream of dopamine?(2025) Raffaelli, Francesca-MariaCombatting overweight and obesity is one of the major concerns in healthcare in the world at the moment. Over two thirds of the world’s population present with an above average BMI, which is the root cause for metabolic diseases, sky rocketing costs in healthcare, and eventually premature death. Recent advances in the field include injections of antidiabetics that promote weightloss, but are essentially black boxes regarding long term side effects, sustainability, and overall consumer safety. An even deeper understanding of adipose tissue biology and its effects on whole body metabolism must be achieved to uncover safe ways for individuals to manage their body weight and therefore lead a healthier life – however long it may be. One mechanism that has been investigated as a potential route to aid weight loss is brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis activation. Brown adipocytes differ from white adipocytes in cell size, fat vacuole distribution, mitochondrial density and a protein unique to their cell type, called uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1). This protein enables brown adipocytes to combust excess energy into heat, instead of intracellular storage, as is the case in white adipocytes. The current state of the knowledge is, that BAT thermogenesis is activated through cold exposure and food intake which lead to hypothalamic signalling via the sympathetic nervous system and increase the release of norepinephrine in BAT, which consequently initiates G protein-coupled receptor-dependent molecular pathways leading to increased UCP1 expression. Interestingly, observations in the 1980s have described dopamine to have similar effects on BAT temperature increases in rodents, as norepinephrine does. A more recent study by Kohlie et al. followed this lead and investigated this observation on a molecular level in rodent cells in vitro; concluding dopamine and dopamine receptor D1-agonists did increase thermogenesis in brown adipocytes. This study therefore aims to further investigate the role of dopamine and dopamine receptors in BAT thermogenesis ex vivo and in vivo in mice using direct tissue treatment, single injection short term approaches, as well as repeated injection and constant release methods over the course of one week in wild type C57BL/6NCrl mice, respectively. Furthermore, the presence of dopamine receptors in BAT of mice was investigated meticoulously in a proteomics approach. Neither BAT thermogenesis activation, nor dopamine receptor presence were detected in these experiments, leading to the conclusion, that dopamine or dopamine receptors D1 and D2 do not directly contribute to BAT thermogenesis. However, an indirect role of dopamine, as the direct metabolic precursor of norepinephrine in the catecholamine synthesis pathway, via the central axis, can not be excluded and should be investigated further.