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
. 2022 Apr 1;9(4):171.
doi: 10.3390/vetsci9040171.

Avian Neuropeptide Y: Beyond Feed Intake Regulation

Elizabeth S Greene  1 , Nedra Abdelli  1   2 , Jalila S Dridi  3 , Sami Dridi  1
Affiliations
Review

Avian Neuropeptide Y: Beyond Feed Intake Regulation

Elizabeth S Greene et al. Vet Sci. .

Abstract

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is one of the most abundant and ubiquitously expressed neuropeptides in both the central and peripheral nervous systems, and its regulatory effects on feed intake and appetite- have been extensively studied in a wide variety of animals, including mammalian and non-mammalian species. Indeed, NPY has been shown to be involved in the regulation of feed intake and energy homeostasis by exerting stimulatory effects on appetite and feeding behavior in several species including chickens, rabbits, rats and mouse. More recent studies have shown that this neuropeptide and its receptors are expressed in various peripheral tissues, including the thyroid, heart, spleen, adrenal glands, white adipose tissue, muscle and bone. Although well researched centrally, studies investigating the distribution and function of peripherally expressed NPY in avian (non-mammalian vertebrates) species are very limited. Thus, peripherally expressed NPY merits more consideration and further in-depth exploration to fully elucidate its functions, especially in non-mammalian species. The aim of the current review is to provide an integrated synopsis of both centrally and peripherally expressed NPY, with a special focus on the distribution and function of the latter.

Keywords: adipose tissue; bone; chickens; feed intake regulation; gut; immune system; liver; muscle; neuropeptide Y.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
NPY amino acid sequence alignments (A) and phylogeny (B). Amino acid sequences were aligned using Clustal Omega 1.2.4 [32]. * positions with a single, fully conserved residue. “:” (colon) conservation between groups of strongly similar properties. “.” (period) conservation between groups of weakly similar properties. Phylogenetic tree generated with MEGA7: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis version 7.0 for bigger datasets [33].
Figure 2
Figure 2
NPY downstream signaling pathways. The representation shows the potential main pathways through which NPY signals. AC, adenylate cyclase; cAMP, cyclic adenosine monophosphate; CREB, cAMP response element binding protein; ERK, extracellular signal-regulated kinase; FoxO, Forkhead Box O; PI3K, phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase; PKA, protein kinase A; PKC, protein kinase C; PPAR, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor; SREBP, sterol regulatory element-binding protein. The figure was made using Biorender.com.
Figure 3
Figure 3
A proposed model describing central feed intake regulation in chickens through hypothalamic (an)orexigenic neuropeptides. AgRP, agouti-related peptide; NPY, neuropeptide Y; POMC, proopiomelanocortin. (-) inhibition; (+) stimulation. The figure was made using Biorender.com.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Peripheral physiological functions of NPY. VLDL, very low-density lipoprotein. The figure was made using Biorender.com.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Tatemoto K., Carlquist M., Mutt V. Neuropeptide Y—A novel brain peptide with structural similarities to peptide YY and pancreatic polypeptide. Nature. 1982;296:659–660. doi: 10.1038/296659a0. - DOI - PubMed
    1. McConn B.R., Gilbert E.R., Cline M.A. Appetite-associated responses to central neuropeptide Y injection in quail. Neuropeptides. 2018;69:9–18. doi: 10.1016/j.npep.2018.03.001. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hökfelt T., Broberger C., Zhang X., Diez M., Kopp J., Xu Z.Q., Landry M., Bao L., Schalling M., Koistinaho J., et al. Neuropeptide Y: Some viewpoints on a multifaceted peptide in the normal and diseased nervous system. Brain Res. Rev. 1998;26:154–166. doi: 10.1016/S0165-0173(97)00052-0. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Lin S., Boey D., Herzog H. NPY and Y receptors: Lessons from transgenic and knockout models. Neuropeptides. 2004;38:189–200. doi: 10.1016/j.npep.2004.05.005. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Levine A.S., Morley J.E. Neuropeptide Y: A potent inducer of consummatory behavior in rats. Peptides. 1984;5:1025–1029. doi: 10.1016/0196-9781(84)90165-7. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources