Gut hormones as potential new targets for appetite regulation and the treatment of obesity

Abstract

Food intake and bodyweight are tightly regulated by the brainstem, hypothalamus and reward circuits. These centres integrate diverse cognitive inputs with humoral and neuronal signals of nutritional status. Our knowledge of the role of gut hormones in this complex homeostatic system has expanded enormously in recent years. This review discusses both the role of gut hormones in appetite regulation, and the current state of development of gut hormone-based obesity therapies, with a particular focus on pancreatic polypeptide, peptide YY, amylin, glucagon-like peptide-1, oxyntomodulin, cholecystokinin and ghrelin. Several gut hormone-based treatments for obesity are under investigation in phase II and III clinical trials, and many more are in the pipeline. © 2008 Adis Data Information BV. All rights reserved.