Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2010 Oct 31;11(1):152.
doi: 10.1186/1465-9921-11-152.

The role of leptin in the respiratory system: an overview

Foteini Malli  1 , Andriana I Papaioannou, Konstantinos I Gourgoulianis, Zoe Daniil
Affiliations
Review

The role of leptin in the respiratory system: an overview

Foteini Malli et al. Respir Res. .

Abstract

Since its cloning in 1994, leptin has emerged in the literature as a pleiotropic hormone whose actions extend from immune system homeostasis to reproduction and angiogenesis. Recent investigations have identified the lung as a leptin responsive and producing organ, while extensive research has been published concerning the role of leptin in the respiratory system. Animal studies have provided evidence indicating that leptin is a stimulant of ventilation, whereas researchers have proposed an important role for leptin in lung maturation and development. Studies further suggest a significant impact of leptin on specific respiratory diseases, including obstructive sleep apnoea-hypopnoea syndrome, asthma, COPD and lung cancer. However, as new investigations are under way, the picture is becoming more complex. The scope of this review is to decode the existing data concerning the actions of leptin in the lung and provide a detailed description of leptin's involvement in the most common disorders of the respiratory system.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Zhang Y, Proenca R, Maffei M, Barone M, Leopold L, Friedman JM. Positional cloning of the mouse obese gene and its human homologue. Nature. 1994;372(6505):425–432. doi: 10.1038/372425a0. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Friedman JM, Halaas JL. Leptin and the regulation of body weight in mammals. Nature. 1998;395(6704):763–770. doi: 10.1038/27376. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Masuzaki H, Ogawa Y, Sagawa N, Hosoda K, Matsumoto T, Mise H, Nishimura H, Yoshimasa Y, Tanaka I, Mori T. et al. Non-adipose tissue production of leptin: leptin as a novel placenta-derived hormone in humans. Nat Med. 1997;3(9):1029–1033. doi: 10.1038/nm0997-1029. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bado A, Levasseur S, Attoub S, Kermorgant S, Laigneau JP, Bortoluzzi MN, Moizo L, Lehy T, Guerre-Millo M, Le Marchand-Brustel Y. et al. The stomach is a source of leptin. Nature. 1998;394(6695):790–793. doi: 10.1038/29547. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Larsson H, Ahren B. Short-term dexamethasone treatment increases plasma leptin independently of changes in insulin sensitivity in healthy women. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1996;81(12):4428–4432. doi: 10.1210/jc.81.12.4428. - DOI - PubMed