Simultaneous postprandial deregulation of the orexigenic endocannabinoid anandamide and the anorexigenic peptide YY in obesity

• Published in: International Journal of Obesity Vol. 36; no. 6; pp. 880 - 885
• Main Authors: Gatta-Cherifi, B, Matias, I, Vallée, M, Tabarin, A, Marsicano, G, Piazza, P V, Cota, D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.06.2012; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: Adult; Analysis; Appetite Regulation - drug effects; Arachidonic Acids - blood; Biological and medical sciences; Body Mass Index; Cannabinoid Receptor Modulators - blood; Chromatography; Cognitive science; Deregulation; Diabetes; Drug therapy; Eating - drug effects; Endocannabinoids; Epidemiology; Female; Food; Glycerides - blood; Health aspects; Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Humans; Insulin; Insulin Resistance; Internal Medicine; Male; Medical sciences; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Metabolic Diseases; Neuroscience; Obesity; Obesity - blood; Obesity - drug therapy; Peptide YY - blood; Peptide YY - drug effects; Peptides; Physiological aspects; Physiology; Plasma; Polyunsaturated Alkamides - blood; Postprandial Period; Public Health; short-communication; France; United States > US; meal; endocannabinoid; PYY; food intake; Obesity; Endocannabinoid; Nutrition; Food intake; Postprandial; Nutrition disorder; Meal; Metabolic diseases; YY peptide; Nutritional status; Hyperphagia
• ISSN: 0307-0565; 1476-5497; 1476-5497; 0307-0565
• DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2011.165

Background: The endocannabinoid system is a potential pharmacotherapy target for obesity. However, the role of this system in human food intake regulation is currently unknown. Methods: To test whether circulating endocannabinoids might functionally respond to food intake and verify whether these orexigenic signals are deregulated in obesity alongside with anorexigenic ones, we measured plasma anandamide (AEA), 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) and peptide YY (PYY) changes in response to a meal in 12 normal-weight and 12 non-diabetic, insulin-resistant obese individuals. Results: Both normal-weight and obese subjects had a significant preprandial AEA peak. Postprandially, AEA levels significantly decreased in normal-weight, whereas no significant changes were observed in obese subjects. Similarly, PYY levels significantly increased in normal-weight subjects only. No meal-related changes were found for 2-AG. Postprandial AEA and PYY changes inversely correlated with waist circumference, and independently explained 20.7 and 21.3% of waist variance. Multiple regression analysis showed that postprandial AEA and PYY changes explained 34% of waist variance, with 8.2% of the variance commonly explained. Conclusion: These findings suggest that AEA might be a physiological meal initiator in humans and furthermore show that postprandially AEA and PYY are concomitantly deregulated in obesity.