Central regulation of food intake, body weight, energy expenditure, and glucose homeostasis

In 1986, only 7 of the 50 states in the US had obesity rates above 10%; whereas in 2010 all 50 states had obesity rates above 10% and 13 states had obesity rates above 30% (C. Centers for Disease, and Prevention, 2010). This is not a problem restricted to the United States, as obesity around the world has doubled since 1980 (Finucane et al., 2011). The burgeoning epidemic of obesity is highlighted by the fact that obesity underlies the development of multiple co-morbidities including diabetes, abnormal cholesterol levels, atherosclerosis, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, reproductive disorders, and numerous types of cancers (Calle et al., 2003; Haslam and James, 2005; Reeves et al., 2007; Danaei et al., 2011; Farzadfar et al., 2011). It is troubling that current strategies for the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus are not optimally effective, and even multiple drug combinations often fail to normalize glycaemia and body weight in a sustained manner in the majority of treated subjects. Thus, understanding how energy and glucose homeostasis is maintained is of upmost importance in order to develop strategies for effective treatments of obesity and diabetes.