Differential regulation of nuclear receptors, neuropeptides and peptide hormones in the hypothalamus and pituitary of food restricted rats

Food restriction is associated with a number of endocrine disturbances. We validated the experimental conditions for several house-keeping genes and determined the effects of 12 day 50% food restriction on hypothalamic and pituitary transcription of genes involved in different neuroendocrine systems, using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A total of 7 nuclear receptors and 12 neuropeptides and peptide hormones were investigated in the dorsal and ventral hypothalamus and the pituitary gland in rats. In the hypothalamus, food restriction reduced mRNA levels of estrogen receptor α (ERα), progesterone receptor, glucocorticoid receptor, thyroid hormone receptor α and β, pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), growth hormone-releasing factor (GHRF), corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), thyrotropin-releasing factor (TRF), somatostatin, and increased that of neuropeptide Y (NPY). In the pituitary, the treatment reduced growth hormone (GH), luteinizing hormone β (LHβ) and thyrotropin β, but increased ERα mRNA levels. The study provides a map of how food restriction affects the regulation of a number of transcripts involved in neuroendocrine control.