Perkins M N, Rothwell N J, Stock M J, Stone T W
Nature. 1981 Jan 29;289(5796):401-2. doi: 10.1038/289401a0.
It is well established that electrical stimulation of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) causes a reduction in food intake, whereas electrolytic or chemical lesions in this area result in hyperphagia and obesity in the rat. This has led to the suggestion that either the ventromedial nucleus itself, or nerve fibres passing close by, are important in the control of food intake. However, obesity due to VMH lesions occurs in weanling rats in the absence of hyperphagia and can develop in adult rats pair-fed with controls, indicating that destruction of this area also causes an increased metabolic efficiency (that is, a reduced energy expenditure). In normal rats, hyperphagia induced by feeding a highly palatable cafeteria diet is often accompanied by a large increase in heat production (diet-induced thermogenesis) which tends to prevent excessive weight gain and obesity. This diet-induced thermogenesis is due to sympathetic activation of brown adipose tissue (BAT) and we have now investigated the possibility that the VMH is involved in the activation of this process. We found that electrical stimulation of this area produced increased BAT thermogenesis, which suggests that the VMH exerts a dual influence in the regulation of energy balance--an inhibitory effect on energy intake and a stimulatory effect on thermogenesis and energy output.
众所周知，电刺激腹内侧下丘脑（VMH）会导致食物摄入量减少，而该区域的电解或化学损伤会导致大鼠出现食欲亢进和肥胖。这表明腹内侧核本身或附近经过的神经纤维在食物摄入控制中很重要。然而，VMH损伤导致的肥胖在断奶大鼠中出现时并不伴有食欲亢进，并且在与对照组配对喂养的成年大鼠中也会出现，这表明该区域的破坏还会导致代谢效率提高（即能量消耗减少）。在正常大鼠中，喂食高度可口的自助餐饮食引起的食欲亢进通常伴随着产热大幅增加（饮食诱导产热），这往往能防止体重过度增加和肥胖。这种饮食诱导产热是由于棕色脂肪组织（BAT）的交感神经激活引起的，我们现在研究了VMH参与这一过程激活的可能性。我们发现，对该区域的电刺激会使BAT产热增加，这表明VMH在能量平衡调节中发挥双重作用——对能量摄入有抑制作用，对产热和能量输出有刺激作用。
