In wild-type mice, it is well known that Agouti is only expressed in skin where it controls the banded-hair phenotype. As a first step to investigate the physiological role of Agouti in cattle, we isolated the corresponding gene and studied its expression pattern. We found no evidence of coding-region sequence variation within and between eight breeds representing a large panel of coat colour p...

We recently demonstrated that in a rodent model of obesity (agouti yellow mice), there is a selective leptin resistance with preservation of the sympathetic actions despite loss of appetite and weight-reducing actions of systemic leptin. Here, we examined whether selective leptin resistance exists in agouti mice during central neural administration of leptin. In agouti obese mice and lean contr...

Expression of the agouti gene from two different promoters, one active at the midpoint of the hair cycle and the other specific for the ventrum, is responsible for generating a range of mammalian pigmentation patterns. We demonstrate that in postnatal mice transcripts from both promoters are confined to the dermal papilla of hair follicles, as predicted by classical transplantation experiments....

The 5'-adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a key part of a kinase-signaling cascade that acts to maintain energy homeostasis. The objective of this experiment was to investigate the possible effects of fasting and refeeding on the gene expression of hypothalamic AMPK, some appetitive regulating peptides and lipid metabolism related enzymes. Seven-day-old male broiler (Arb...

In wild-type mice, it is well known that Agouti is only expressed in skin where it controls the banded-hair phenotype. As a first step to investigate the physiological role of Agouti in cattle, we isolated the corresponding gene and studied its expression pattern. We found no evidence of coding-region sequence variation within and between eight breeds representing a large panel of coat colour p...

In wild-type mice, it is well known that Agouti is only expressed in skin where it controls the banded-hair phenotype. As a first step to investigate the physiological role of Agouti in cattle, we isolated the corresponding gene and studied its expression pattern. We found no evidence of coding-region sequence variation within and between eight breeds representing a large panel of coat colour p...

An interesting example of extradermal deposition of melanin in vertebrates, notably in mammals, is splenic melanosis. In particular, if the phenomenon of splenic melanosis is correlated with hair or skin pigmentation, it must reflect the amount and perhaps the quality of pigment produced in hair follicle melanocytes. The present paper is our first study on splenic pigmentation in mice of phenot...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to verify the effects of a multidisciplinary therapy (24 weeks) on neurohormonal control of food intake, specifically in orexigenic (total ghrelin, agouti-related protein [AgRP], neuropeptide Y [NPY], and melanin-concentrating hormone) and anorexigenic factors (leptin, insulin, and alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone [α-MSH]), in obese adolescents. METHODS...

It is well known that peripherally administered growth hormone (GH) results in decreased body fat mass. However, GH-deficient patients increase their food intake when substituted with GH, suggesting that GH also has an appetite stimulating effect. Transgenic mice with an overexpression of bovine GH in the central nervous system (CNS) were created to investigate the role of GH in CNS. This study...