December 23, 2024

Why Some People Can’t Stop Eating: Scientists Discover Unique Brain Circuit Linked to BMI

Understanding these brain procedures is essential for establishing treatments for overeating.A newly identified link in between 2 brain areas could influence consuming habits control.A recent research study reveals that weaker connections between brain areas related to smell and behavior inspiration are associated with greater BMI, recommending these pathways affect eating habits and the perception of food reward.Why can some individuals quickly stop eating when they are full and others cant, which can lead to obesity?A Northwestern Medicine study has found one reason might be a newly discovered structural connection between 2 areas in the brain that appears to be involved in controling feeding habits. These regions involve the sense of smell and habits motivation.The weaker the connection in between these 2 brain regions, the greater an individuals Body Mass Index (BMI), the Northwestern researchers report.The detectives discovered this connection in between the olfactory tubercle, an olfactory cortical area, which is part of the brains benefit system, and a midbrain area called the periaqueductal gray (PAG), included in inspired habits in action to unfavorable sensations like discomfort and threat and possibly in suppression of eating.The research study was just recently released in the Journal of Neuroscience.Role of Smell in Feeding BehaviorPrevious research at Northwestern by co-author Thorsten Kahnt, now at the National Institutes of Health, has actually shown the odor of food is appealing when youre hungry.”Understanding how these basic processes work in the brain is an important requirement to future work that can lead to treatments for overeating,” stated senior author Christina Zelano, associate professor of neurology at Feinberg.How the study workedThis research study used MRI brain data– neurological imaging– from the Human Connectome Project, a big multi-center NIH task created to build a network map of the human brain.Northwesterns Zhou found correlations to BMI in the circuit in between the midbrain region and the olfactory tubercle, the periaqueductal gray.

Comprehending these brain processes is vital for developing treatments for overeating.A newly determined link in between 2 brain locations might affect consuming habits control.A current research study exposes that weaker connections between brain areas related to smell and habits motivation are associated with greater BMI, recommending these pathways influence consuming habits and the perception of food reward.Why can some individuals quickly stop consuming when they are full and others cant, which can lead to obesity?A Northwestern Medicine study has discovered one factor might be a newly discovered structural connection between 2 regions in the brain that appears to be involved in regulating feeding habits. These regions involve the sense of odor and behavior motivation.The weaker the connection between these 2 brain areas, the higher an individuals Body Mass Index (BMI), the Northwestern researchers report.The investigators found this connection between the olfactory tubercle, an olfactory cortical region, which is part of the brains reward system, and a midbrain area called the periaqueductal gray (PAG), included in motivated habits in reaction to unfavorable feelings like pain and danger and potentially in suppression of eating.The study was just recently published in the Journal of Neuroscience.Role of Smell in Feeding BehaviorPrevious research at Northwestern by co-author Thorsten Kahnt, now at the National Institutes of Health, has shown the odor of food is tasty when youre starving.”Understanding how these standard procedures work in the brain is an important requirement to future work that can lead to treatments for overeating,” said senior author Christina Zelano, associate teacher of neurology at Feinberg.How the research study workedThis research study utilized MRI brain information– neurological imaging– from the Human Connectome Project, a large multi-center NIH job created to build a network map of the human brain.Northwesterns Zhou discovered correlations to BMI in the circuit between the midbrain region and the olfactory tubercle, the periaqueductal gray.