Oxytocin – The Sweet Hormone?. (May 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Leng, Gareth; Sabatier, Nancy
• Is Part Of: Trends in endocrinology and metabolism. Volume 28:Number 5(2017)
• Page Start: 365
• Page End: 376
• Publication Date: 2017-05
• Subjects: Endocrinology -- Periodicals; Metabolism -- Periodicals; Metabolism; 616.4
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tem.2017.02.007
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1043-2760

Abstract

Abstract : Mammalian neurons that produce oxytocin and vasopressin apparently evolved from an ancient cell type with both sensory and neurosecretory properties that probably linked reproductive functions to energy status and feeding behavior. Oxytocin in modern mammals is an autocrine/paracrine regulator of cell function, a systemic hormone, a neuromodulator released from axon terminals within the brain, and a 'neurohormone' that acts at receptors distant from its site of release. In the periphery oxytocin is involved in electrolyte homeostasis, gastric motility, glucose homeostasis, adipogenesis, and osteogenesis, and within the brain it is involved in food reward, food choice, and satiety. Oxytocin preferentially suppresses intake of sweet-tasting carbohydrates while improving glucose tolerance and supporting bone remodeling, making it an enticing translational target. Trends: In a wide range of species, from invertebrates to mammals, oxytocin-like neuropeptides link nutrient availability to feeding behavior and reproductive behaviors. In the brain, oxytocin signals not only to the classical appetite-regulating centers but also to brain regions involved in food reward. Oxytocin preferentially suppresses the intake of sweet-tasting carbohydrates, both by actions on the reward systems of the brain and by effects on sweet taste receptors. A major site of action is the ventromedial hypothalamus, which has a key role in glucose homeostasis as well as in reproductive behavior. In the periphery, intrinsic oxytocin systems in the gut regulate glucose homeostasis and gut motility.