Hypothalamic neuronal histamine regulates sympathetic nerve activity and expression of uncoupling protein 1 mRNA in brown adipose tissue in rats

• Published in: Neuroscience Vol. 125; no. 3; pp. 535 - 540
• Main Authors: Yasuda, T, Masaki, T, Sakata, T, Yoshimatsu, H
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 2004; Elsevier
• Subjects: Action Potentials - drug effects; Action Potentials - physiology; Adipose Tissue, Brown - innervation; Adipose Tissue, Brown - metabolism; Animals; Biological and medical sciences; brown adipose tissue; Carrier Proteins - genetics; Energy Metabolism - physiology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression Regulation - drug effects; Gene Expression Regulation - physiology; histamine; Histamine - metabolism; Histamine - pharmacology; Hypothalamus - cytology; Hypothalamus - drug effects; Hypothalamus - metabolism; Injections, Intraventricular; Ion Channels; Male; Membrane Proteins - genetics; Mitochondrial Proteins; Neurons - drug effects; Neurons - metabolism; Paraventricular Hypothalamic Nucleus - cytology; Paraventricular Hypothalamic Nucleus - drug effects; Paraventricular Hypothalamic Nucleus - metabolism; paraventricular nucleus; preoptic area; Preoptic Area - cytology; Preoptic Area - drug effects; Preoptic Area - metabolism; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; RNA, Messenger - drug effects; RNA, Messenger - metabolism; Sympathetic Fibers, Postganglionic - physiology; sympathetic nerve; Uncoupling Protein 1; Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs; PBS; histamine; MSH; POA; sympathetic nerve; LHA; Ant; UCP1; PVN; preoptic area; uncoupling protein 1; VMH; ARC; brown adipose tissue; BAT; NPY; CRH; AGRP; Lat; paraventricular nucleus; Sympathetic nerve; Rat; Rodentia; Central nervous system; Brown adipose tissue; Hypothalamus; Paraventricular nucleus; Gene expression; Encephalon; Histamine; Vertebrata; Mammalia; Animal
• ISSN: 0306-4522; 1873-7544
• DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2003.11.039

To clarify how hypothalamic neuronal histamine regulates peripheral energy expenditure, we investigated the effect of infusion of histamine into the third cerebral ventricle or discrete hypothalamic regions on sympathetic nerve activity and expression of uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) mRNA in brown adipose tissue (BAT). Infusion of histamine (200 nmol) into the third cerebral ventricle of anesthetized rats significantly increased the electrophysiological activity of sympathetic nerves ( P<0.01) and UCP1 mRNA expression in the BAT ( P<0.05). Microinjection of histamine (10 nmol) into the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) and preoptic area (POA) produced similar significant increases in BAT sympathetic nerve activity ( P<0.01 for each). By contrast, injection of histamine into the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus or lateral hypothalamic area had no effect. We conclude that hypothalamic neuronal histamine may regulate energy expenditure in BAT through the activation of sympathetic nerves. The PVN and/or POA appear to be the principal hypothalamic sites that mediate the stimulatory effect of histamine on this efferent pathway.