Maternal deprivation by early weaning causesthe nociceptinto alter the palatability and cookie consumption

Abstract

The deprivation of maternal care during the initial development period, as well as interruption of early breastfeeding, promotes changes in eating behavior, however, the underlying neuromodulatory mechanisms have not been fully understood. Studies demonstrate theimportance of the nociceptin receptor (NOP) in modulating the immediate hedonic impact and the hyperphagic effect associated with nociceptin/orphanin FQ (N/OFQ or nociceptin) overexpression. In the current study, experiments have beenperformedto understand the impact of early weaningon the control of hedonic eating behavior and the NOP system's modulatory performance on the resulting phenotype of this injury. Early weaning promotespreference and increasespalatable food consumption, compared to the control group. The NOP receptor antagonist (SB 612111) isable to normalize the palatable food consumption in animals of theearlyweanedgroup, in addition to reducing this consumption in the control group. These results are concordant with the hypothesis that changein hedonic eating behavior, resulting from early weaning are influenced by the NOP system,which, in turn, enhances its potential as a therapeutic target for obesity.