Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40419727›Full record

ArticleNeuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology2026

FGF21 analogue PF-05231023 on alcohol consumption and neuronal activity in the nucleus accumbens.

Bart J Cooley, Cassandra V Occelli Hanbury-Brown, Eun A Choi, Willow A Heller, Alyssa W Lim, Andrew J Lawrence, Paul S Haber, Gavan P McNally, E Zayra Millan

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Negative feedback regulation of alcohol ingestion through the FGF21-PVH oxytocin-VTA dopamine system.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2026
    Article
  5. Namesake of PF-05231023: how nomenclature confusion leads to experimental misinterpretation in pharmacologic research.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026
    Article
  6. Article
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

9 authors.

Bart J CooleySchool of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Cassandra V Occelli Hanbury-BrownSchool of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Eun A ChoiSchool of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Willow A HellerSchool of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Alyssa W LimSchool of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Andrew J LawrenceFlorey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Parkville, Australia; Florey Department of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-6836-727X
Paul S HaberFaculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Gavan P McNallySchool of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-9061-6463
E Zayra MillanSchool of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia. zayra.millan@unsw.edu.au.ORCID 0000-0003-3845-3833

Funding

Brain and Behavior Research Foundation (Brain & Behavior Research Foundation) 29581Department of Health | National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) GNT 2009851
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is a liver-derived hormone known to suppress alcohol consumption in mice and non-human primates. However, the role of FGF21 in modulating environmental and behavioural factors driving alcohol consumption-such as cue-driven responses and effortful actions to obtain alcohol-and its effects on neural activity related to consumption, remain unclear. Here, we evaluated the impact of PF-05231023, a long-acting FGF21 analogue, across multiple dimensions of alcohol consumption and motivation and examined consumption-related activity in the nucleus accumbens. PF-05231023 reduced alcohol intake and preference in a dose- and sex-specific manner; diminished approach behaviours following an alcohol but not sucrose cue; and decreased lever-pressing under a progressive-ratio schedule, both alone and when combined with the Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonist Exendin-4; it did not reduce lever-pressing for sucrose in alcohol-naïve mice. Additionally, PF-05231023 altered the microstructure of alcohol consumption by shortening drinking bouts and increased the recruitment of nucleus accumbens (Acb) neurons associated with bout termination as determined by micro-endoscopy of GCaMP7f. These findings demonstrate that PF-05231023 broadly suppresses alcohol-motivated behaviours without impacting natural reward and that targeting FGF21 signaling in combination with GLP-1 agonists may enhance therapeutic efficacy. Mechanistically, the observed reductions in alcohol consumption following PF-05231023 may involve diminished alcohol palatability and modulation of neuronal activity from distinct subsets of Acb neurons.

Indexed as

Alcohol DrinkingFibroblast Growth FactorsNeuronsNucleus AccumbensAnimalsCuesEthanolFemaleMaleMiceMice, Inbred C57BLMotivationEthanolfibroblast growth factor 21Fibroblast Growth Factors

Identifiers

PMID40419727
PMCPMC12708781

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.