Investigators at NARSAD have made a discovery in how the brain shapes decisions about when and how much we eat. The group had been studying how dopamine influences the prefrontal cortex and found that dopamine plays a role in regulating food intake. Scientists took a close look at neurons in the pre- frontal cortex that have receptors which receive signals for various types of dopamine, and found that D1 receptors are wide spread in the PFC. Prior research has shown that D1 receptors are associated with hunger and perception of food. The findings have shed new light for the treatment of eating disorders including obesity and anorexia, by targeting the pre frontal circuit with new drugs.
