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
. 2025 Aug;292(15):3896-3899.
doi: 10.1111/febs.70078. Epub 2025 Mar 20.

Estrogen in the brain - neuroestrogens can regulate appetite and influence body weight

Tram Thi-Ngoc Nguyen  1   2 , Yoshiaki Kanemoto  1   2 , Tomohiro Kurokawa  1   2   3 , Shigeaki Kato  1   2   3
Affiliations
Review

Estrogen in the brain - neuroestrogens can regulate appetite and influence body weight

Tram Thi-Ngoc Nguyen et al. FEBS J. 2025 Aug.

Abstract

Estrogens can modulate energy balance by regulating food intake and energy expenditure. Hayashi et al. revealed that hypothalamic neuroestrogens, especially E2 from aromatase Cyp19a1, regulate appetite and body weight. In ovariectomized mice, elevated hypothalamic Cyp19a1 and Mc4r expression coincided with reduced food intake and weight loss. Pharmacological or genetic disruption of aromatase in mice lowered Mc4r expression and increased food intake, whereas neuronal Cyp19a1 overexpression enhanced Mc4r expression and suppressed appetite, independent of leptin. Therefore, neuroestrogens critically maintain metabolic equilibrium, positioning aromatase-derived E2 as a promising anti-obesity target.

Keywords: Cyp19a1 expression; MC4R; aromatase; energy balance; food intake; neuroestrogens.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Eckel LA (2004) Estradiol: a rhythmic, inhibitory, indirect control of meal size. Physiol Behav 82, 35–41.
    1. Dye L & Blundell JE (1997) Menstrual cycle and appetite control: implications for weight regulation. Hum Reprod 12, 1142–1151.
    1. Van Vugt DA (2010) Brain imaging studies of appetite in the context of obesity and the menstrual cycle. Hum Reprod Update 16, 276–292.
    1. Leeners B, Geary N, Tobler PN & Asarian L (2017) Ovarian hormones and obesity. Hum Reprod Update 23, 300–321.
    1. Yan H, Zhou F, Yang W, Pan Q, Shen Z, Han G, Allred K, Allred C, Xu Y & Guo S (2018) Estrogen improves insulin sensitivity and suppresses hepatic glucose production via the transcription factor Foxo1. Diabetes 67, 1875.

LinkOut - more resources