Leptin in early life: A key factor for the development of the adult metabolic profile
Entity
UAM. Departamento de Fisiología; UAM. Departamento de PediatríaPublisher
KargerDate
2012-03-01Citation
10.1159/000336967
Obesity Facts 5.1 (2012): 138-150
ISSN
1662-4025 (print); 1662-4033 (online)DOI
10.1159/000336967Subjects
Adipose tissue; Hypothalamus; Leptin; Metabolic programming; MedicinaRights
© 2012 S. Karger GmbH, FreiburgAbstract
Leptin levels during the perinatal period are important for the development of metabolic systems
involved in energy homeostasis. In rodents, there is a postnatal leptin surge, with circulating
leptin levels increasing around postnatal day (PND) 5 and peaking between PND 9 and
PND 10. At this time circulating leptin acts as an important trophic factor for the development
of hypothalamic circuits that control energy homeostasis and food seeking and reward behaviors.
Blunting the postnatal leptin surge results in long-term leptin insensitivity and increased
susceptibility to diet-induced obesity during adulthood. Pharmacologically increased leptin
levels in the postnatal period also have long-term effects on metabolism. Nevertheless, this
effect is controversial as postnatal hyperleptinemia is reported to both increase and decrease
the predisposition to obesity in adulthood. The different effects reported in the literature could
be explained by the different moments at which this hormone was administered, suggesting
that modifications of the neonatal leptin surge at specific time points could selectively affect
the development of central and peripheral systems that are undergoing modifications at this
moment resulting in different metabolic and behavioral outcomes. In addition, maternal nutrition
and the hormonal environment during pregnancy and lactation may also modulate the
offspring’s response to postnatal modifications in leptin levels. This review highlights the importance
of leptin levels during the perinatal period in the development of metabolic systems
that control energy homeostasis and how modifications of these levels may induce long-lasting
and potentially irreversible effects on metabolism
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Google Scholar:Granado, Miriam
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Fuente-Martín, Esther
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García-Cáceres, Cristina
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Argente, Jesús
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Chowen, Julie Ann
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