According to scientists, leptin is a hormone released by fasting tissue that reduces appetite while grelin hormone is released by stomach tissue that make us to eat more.
Professor Kazuyoshi Ukena of Hiroshima University discovered Neurosecretory Protein GL NPGL, and explained that hunger and energy systems are complex.
Professor Ukena first discovered NPGL in chickens when he discovered that growing birds grow rapidly even if they don’t eat good food. Researchers at HU
performed a DNA database search and discovered that NPGL is present in vertebrates.
Professor Ukena’s team fed three groups of mice, on different diets, the first set of mice- low-calorie diet for 24 hours, the second group – high fat diet for 5 weeks and the third group high fat diet for 13 weeks.
They discovered that the mice fed on a low calorie diet have an increase in NPGL expression, while the 5-week high-fat-diet group saw a large decrease in NPGL expression. Mice fed on high fat diet are not sensitive to appetite suppressing effects.
NPGL increases appetite when energy levels fall and reduces appetite during energy overload.