Craving snacks after a meal? It might be food-seeking neurons, not an overactive appetite

Key takeawaysA new study from UCLA researchers is the first to discover food-seeking cells in a part of a mouse ’s brain usually associated with panic – but not with feeding.Activating a selective cluster of these cells kicked mice into “hot pursuit” of live and non-prey food, and showed a craving for fatty foods intense enough that the mice endured foot shocks to get them, something full mice normally would not do.If true in humans, who also carry these cells, the findings could help address the circuit that can circumvent the normal hunger pressures of “how, what and when to eat.”People who find themselves rummaging around in the refrigerator for a snack not long after they ’ve eaten a filling meal might have overactive food-seeking neurons, not an overactive appetite.UCLA psychologists have discovered a circuit in the brain of mice that makes them crave food and seek it out, even when they are not hungry. When stimulated, this cluster of cells propels mice to forage vigorously and to prefer fatty and pleasurable foods like chocolate over healthier foods like carrots.People possess the same kinds of cells, and if confirmed in humans, the finding could offer new ways of understanding eating disorders.The report, published in the journalNature Communications, is the first to find cells dedicated to food-seeking in a part of the mouse brainstem usually associated with panic, but not with feeding.“This region we’re studying is called the periaqueductal gray (P...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news