Departamento de Farmacologia, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Campus Trindade, 88049-900, Florianópolis, SC, Brazil.
Curr Pharm Des. 2013;19(38):6773-90. doi: 10.2174/13816128113199990411.
Ghrelin is a gastric hormone that stimulates growth hormone (GH) secretion and food intake to regulate energy homeostasis and body weight by binding to its receptor, GH secretagogue receptor (GHSR1a), which is most highly expressed in the pituitary and hypothalamus. Nowadays there is considerable evidence showing that the GHSR1a is also expressed in numerous extra-hypothalamic neuronal populations and the physiological role of ghrelin is by far wider than considered before including learning and memory, anxiety, depression and neuroprotection. The present review attempts to provide a comprehensive picture of the role of ghrelin in the central nervous system and to highlight recent findings showing its potential as an innovative therapeutic agent in neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.
胃饥饿素是一种胃激素，通过与生长激素促分泌素受体（GHSR1a）结合来刺激生长激素（GH）的分泌和摄食，从而调节能量平衡和体重，GHSR1a 在垂体和下丘脑中的表达最高。如今，有相当多的证据表明，GHSR1a 也在众多下丘脑外神经元群体中表达，胃饥饿素的生理作用远比以前认为的要广泛，包括学习和记忆、焦虑、抑郁和神经保护。本综述试图提供胃饥饿素在中枢神经系统中的作用的全面描述，并强调最近的发现表明其作为神经退行性疾病（包括阿尔茨海默病和帕金森病）的创新治疗剂的潜力。
