Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31222048›Full record

ArticleNature communications2019

Brain leptin reduces liver lipids by increasing hepatic triglyceride secretion and lowering lipogenesis.

Martina Theresa Hackl, Clemens Fürnsinn, Christina Maria Schuh, Martin Krssak, Fabrizia Carli, Sara Guerra, Angelika Freudenthaler, Sabina Baumgartner-Parzer, Thomas H Helbich, Anton Luger and 4 more

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 61 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
61citing papers in PubMed
5.9field-weighted citation impact, top 3% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

61 citing papers in PubMed, 108 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Hypothalamus-liver talks: whispers in the language of metabolism.Reviews in endocrine & metabolic disorders · 2026
    Review
  6. Review
  7. Article
  8. Brain Nutrient Sensing: A Unifying Framework.Annual review of physiology · 2026
    Review
  9. Article
  10. Advances in Adipose Tissue Biology.Endocrine reviews · 2026
    Review
  11. Review
  12. Adipokine in Metabolic Liver Disease: Adipo-Brain-Liver Cross talk.International journal of endocrinology · 2026
    Review
  13. Research Progress on Leptin in Metabolic Dysfunction-associated Fatty Liver Disease.Journal of clinical and translational hepatology · 2025
    Review
  14. Article
  15. Review
  16. Effects of DietaryBiology · 2025
    Article
  17. Review
  18. Article
  19. Energy metabolism in health and diseases.Signal transduction and targeted therapy · 2025
    Review
  20. Liver diseases: epidemiology, causes, trends and predictions.Signal transduction and targeted therapy · 2025
    Review

1 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors at 5 institutions in 3 countries.

Martina Theresa HacklDepartment of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3182-788X
Clemens FürnsinnDepartment of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
Christina Maria SchuhDepartment of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0089-5989
Martin KrssakDepartment of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9717-803X
Fabrizia CarliInstitute of Clinical Physiology, National Research Council, Via G. Moruzzi 1, 56124, Pisa, Italy.
Sara GuerraInstitute of Clinical Physiology, National Research Council, Via G. Moruzzi 1, 56124, Pisa, Italy.
Angelika FreudenthalerDepartment of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
Sabina Baumgartner-ParzerDepartment of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
Thomas H HelbichDepartment of Biomedical Imaging and Image-Guided Therapy, Division of Molecular and Gender Imaging, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3169-778X
Anton LugerDepartment of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
Maximilian ZeydaDepartment of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5000-1974
Amalia GastaldelliInstitute of Clinical Physiology, National Research Council, Via G. Moruzzi 1, 56124, Pisa, Italy.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2594-1651
Christoph BuettnerDepartments of Medicine and Neuroscience, and Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism Institute (DOMI), Icahn School of Medicine at Mt Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Pl, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
Thomas SchererDepartment of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Medicine III, Medical University of Vienna, Spitalgasse 23, 1090, Vienna, Austria. thomas.scherer@meduniwien.ac.at.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4980-706X
Medical University of Vienna · ATScuola Superiore Sant'Anna · ITChristian Doppler Laboratory for Thermoelectricity · ATIcahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai · USIstituto di Fisiologia Clinica · IT

Funding

RESEARCH TRAININGP30DK026687 · NIDDK · ST. LUKE'S-ROOSEVELT INST FOR HLTH SCIS · PI Anthony W Ferrante, DYMPNA GALLAGHER · 1986 to 2026
$33.0M
Translational Research CoreP30DK020541 · NIDDK · ALBERT EINSTEIN COLLEGE OF MEDICINE, INC · PI STREAMSON C CHUA · 2015 to 2026
$27.7M
The role of Stat3 signaling in leptin's pleitropic action.K08DK074873 · NIDDK · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · PI BUETTNER, CHRISTOPH · 2006 to 2009
$510k
The role of the endocannabinoid system in regulating hepatic glucose fluxesR03DK082724 · NIDDK · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · PI BUETTNER, CHRISTOPH · 2009 to 2010
$169k
Austrian Science Fund (Fonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung) P26766Austrian Science Fund FWF P 26766Austrian Science Fund FWF P 30830EC | Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation H2020) 634413EC | Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation H2020) 722619NIDDK NIH HHS K08 DK074873NIDDK NIH HHS P30 DK020541NIDDK NIH HHS P30 DK026687NIDDK NIH HHS R03 DK082724
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Hepatic steatosis develops when lipid influx and production exceed the liver's ability to utilize/export triglycerides. Obesity promotes steatosis and is characterized by leptin resistance. A role of leptin in hepatic lipid handling is highlighted by the observation that recombinant leptin reverses steatosis of hypoleptinemic patients with lipodystrophy by an unknown mechanism. Since leptin mainly functions via CNS signaling, we here examine in rats whether leptin regulates hepatic lipid flux via the brain in a series of stereotaxic infusion experiments. We demonstrate that brain leptin protects from steatosis by promoting hepatic triglyceride export and decreasing de novo lipogenesis independently of caloric intake. Leptin's anti-steatotic effects are generated in the dorsal vagal complex, require hepatic vagal innervation, and are preserved in high-fat-diet-fed rats when the blood brain barrier is bypassed. Thus, CNS leptin protects from ectopic lipid accumulation via a brain-vagus-liver axis and may be a therapeutic strategy to ameliorate obesity-related steatosis.

Indexed as

AnimalsBlood-Brain BarrierDiet, High-FatDisease Models, AnimalHumansInfusions, IntraventricularInjections, IntraventricularLeptinLipogenesisLipoproteins, VLDLLiverMaleMedulla OblongataNon-alcoholic Fatty Liver DiseasePolyethylene GlycolsRatsLeptinLipoproteins, VLDLPolyethylene GlycolsTriglyceridestyloxapol

Identifiers

PMID31222048
PMCPMC6586634
OpenAlexW2949364854

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.