Endocrine Abstracts

The melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) represents the major hypothalamic G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) controlling feeding behavior and therefore body weight regulation. MC4R is highly expressed in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) where hormonal and neuroendocrine signals from periphery and arcuate nucleus (ARC) are allocated. MC4R knockout in mice or natural occurring loss-of function variants result in hyperphagia and early-onset obesity. MC4R mutations represent the most f...