(P27-043-23) Dopaminergic Inputs Regulate DON- Induced Anorexia in Mice

Objectives: Deoxynivalenol (DON), is a mycotoxin produced by several Fusarium species that can cause antifeeding and vomiting in animals and is often detected in grains. dopaminergic inputs play a significant part in the food regulation and may even regulate DON- induced anorexia mechanism. The present study aimed to acquire insight into the neural circuits in DON- induced anorexia.

Methods: We adopted the “modeling of acute antifeeding in mice” as the basic experimental model and used gavage and intraperitoneal injection to explore the effect of DON- induced anorexia. At the same time, dopamine (DA) neurons in the mouse anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), stimulated by different intensity causing overeating or anorexia. Proteins in neural pathway were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), western blotting, and immunofluorescence technique, the levels of mRNA were detected by RT-qPCR.

Results: We found that 1 mg/kg·bw of DON can acutely induce anorexia and increase the plasma intestinal hormones and ghrelin in mice and direct injection of ghrelin can trigger anorexia behavior in mice. Furthermore, ghrelin receptor antagonist attenuated DON-induced anorectic responses. we also observed DA neurotransmission, and constant activation of these neurons in ACC and contributes to DON-induced anorectic behaviors.

Conclusions: Our research provides strong evidence for the development of DON- induced anorexia and drugs with weight loss, which may contribute to the pathophysiology of anorexia.

Funding Sources: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China.