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Hypothalamic BDNF and obesity: found in translation

A recent study provides new insights into the central control of energy balance and obesity, showing that feeding behavior in mice can be modulated by local dendritic translation of a key protein in neuronal plasticity brain-derived neurotrophic factor (pages 564–571).

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Figure 1: Increased BDNF translation in VMH dendrites may strengthen connections to D2 neurons from the nucleus accumbens, enhancing the satiety effects of these neurons.

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Correspondence to Charles V Mobbs.

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Schwartz, E., Mobbs, C. Hypothalamic BDNF and obesity: found in translation. Nat Med 18, 496–497 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/nm.2716

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