Food intake control and RNA content of hypothalamic neurons in infant rats.

The influence of glycerol, glucose and lysine administration on the total RNA content in individual neurons of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) and lateral hypothalamus area (LHA) in infant male rats was studied. Sixty minutes after administration, the total RNA content of the VMH neurons significantly decreased--from 13th day after glycerol and from 17th day after the glucose and lysine administration. The total RNA content of LHA neurons significantly increased from 17th day after glycerol and glucose and on 25th day after lysine administration. The noted changes of the RNA content, and especially the changes of the RNA proportion in these hypothalamic regions are well corresponding with the onset of the hypophagic effect of glycerol, glucose and amino acids in infant rats. The oppositional changes of the RNA content of VMH and LHA neurons are in conformity with the different role of these hypothalamic centers in food intake control.