OBJECTIVE Obesity is a complex heterogeneous disease that is caused by genes, environmental factors, and the interaction between the two. The leptin (LEP) and leptin receptor (LEPR) genes have been evaluated for polymorphisms that could potentially be related to the pathophysiology of obesity and its complications. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of LEP G2548A and LEPR 668A/G ...

Obesity is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and is associated with increased plasma levels of the adipose-derived hormone leptin. Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) express leptin receptors (LepR); however, their physiological role is unclear. We hypothesized that leptin, at levels to mimic morbid obesity, impairs vascular relaxation. To test this, we used control and VSM-LepR knockout...

BACKGROUND Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of metabolic risk factors including dyslipidemia, impaired glucose tolerance, hypertension and central obesity. BDNF (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor) and leptin have been implied in the energy homeostasis. The purposes of this study were to examine concentrations of leptin, BDNF and biochemical parameters in metabolic-syndrome subjects and healthy c...

A C3469T mutation at exon 3 of the pig leptin (Lep) gene has been genotyped in diverse pig breeds yielding controversial results with regard to its association with growth, fatness and carcass traits. A similar situation has been reported for a HpaII restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) in the pig leptin receptor (Lepr) gene, where associations were found depending on the statistical...

Leptin signals energy sufficiency to the reproductive hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis. Studies using genetic models have demonstrated that hypothalamic neurons are major players mediating these effects. Leptin receptor (LepR) is also expressed in the pituitary gland and in the gonads, but the physiological effects of leptin in these sites are still unclear. Female mice with selective ...

Obesity is associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. A number of adipocytokines are increased in obesity causing low-level chronic inflammation associated with an increased risk of tumors. The adipocytokine leptin shows profound anti-obesity and pro-inflammatory activities. We have hypothesized that in common obesity, high circulating leptin levels might contribute to an increased ris...

Leptin is an important regulator of appetite, energy metabolism, and reproduction and is mainly synthesized in the adipocytes and then secreted into the bloodstream. The leptin receptor was classified as type I cytokine receptor due to its structural homology with IL-6 receptors and the signaling pathways in which they are both involved. The aim of our study is to comparatively assess the gene ...

OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to investigate whether adiposity and metabolic markers, such as leptin, glucose, and lipids, are influenced by leptin (LEP) and leptin receptor (LEPR) gene polymorphisms in a sample of our population. SUBJECTS AND METHODS A group of 326 individuals of Caucasian-European descent, aged 30 to 80 years, 87 men and 239 women, 148 obese and 178 non-obese, was rand...

Objective: The peak bone mass is recognized as an important determinant in the development of osteoporosis. We investigated associations between bone mineral density (BMD) and polymorphisms of the leptin receptor (LEPR) and estrogen receptor a (ERa) genes in young men. Design: BMD, anthropometric characteristics, and serum leptin concentrations were measured in young men and compared with regar...

Simler, Nadine, Alexandra Grosfeld, André Peinnequin, Michèle Guerre-Millo, and André-Xavier Bigard. Leptin receptor-deficient obese Zucker rats reduce their food intake in response to hypobaric hypoxia. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 290: E591–E597, 2006. First published October 18, 2005; doi:10.1152/ajpendo.00289.2005.— Exposure to hypoxia induces anorexia in humans and rodents, but the role o...