Effects of starvation on the expression of feeding related neuropeptides in the larval zebrafish hypothalamus.

Abstract

Vertebrate feeding behavior is regulated by neuropeptide Y (NPY), GALANIN and GMAP prepropeptide (GAL), agouti related neuropeptide (AGRP) and proopiomelanocortin (POMC) in the hypothalamus. However, there are few studies on the relationship between these neuropeptides and feeding in zebrafish larvae. In the present study, real-time quantitative PCR and in situ hybridization were applied to examine the expression levels of npy, galanin, agrp and pomca in the hypothalamus of zebrafish larvae after starvation and re-feeding. The results showed the expression of agrp and galanin increased significantly after starvation compared to the control group, whilst the expression of pomca decreased significantly compared to control. If the animals were re-fed for two days after starvation, the expression of pomca, agrp and galanin showed no significant difference from the control. Expression of npy did not alter in either condition. These results indicate that starvation increases expression levels of agrp and galanin, and reduces the pomca expression. In addition, these starvation-induced changes can be reversed by re-feeding.