In mammals, leptin is a peripheral satiety factor that inhibits feeding by regulating a variety of appetite-related hormones in the brain. However, most of the previous studies examining leptin in fish feeding were performed with mammalian leptins, which share very low sequence homologies with fish leptins. To elucidate the function and mechanism of endogenous fish leptins in feeding regulation, recombinant goldfish leptin-AI and leptin-AII were expressed in methylotrophic yeast and purified by immobilized metal ion affinity chromatography (IMAC). By intraperitoneal (IP) injection, both leptin-AI and leptin-AII were shown to inhibit the feeding behavior and to reduce the food consumption of goldfish in 2 h. In addition, co-treatment of leptin-AI or leptin-AII could block the feeding behavior and reduce the food consumption induced by neuropeptide Y (NPY) injection. High levels of leptin receptor (lepR) mRNA were detected in the hypothalamus, telencephalon, optic tectum and cerebellum of the goldfish brain. The appetite inhibitory effects of leptins were mediated by downregulating the mRNA levels of orexigenic NPY, agouti-related peptide (AgRP) and orexin and upregulating the mRNA levels of anorexigenic cocaine-amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART), cholecystokinin (CCK), melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) and proopiomelanocortin (POMC) in different areas of the goldfish brain. Our study, as a whole, provides new insights into the functions and mechanisms of leptins in appetite control in a fish model.

No abstract

SummaryBackground: Cardiogenic shock after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) remains a poor prognosis. Although numerous studies discussed the predictors of cardiogenic shock complicating AMI, the data in Chinese patients is still absent. The goal of this study is to develop a riskpredictive score for cardiogenic shock after AMI, among Chinese patients, so as to guide clinicians to prevent cardiogenic shock.Methods: Patients with ST-segment elevated AMI were provided by two Chinese hospitals from 1994 to 2004. Baseline characteristics of each case were documented. Multivariable logistic regression modeling techniques were used to develop a model to predict the occurrence of cardiogenic shock within 72 h after admission. On the basis of the coefficients in the model, a risk score was developed for the probability of cardiogenic shock. To test its viability, another population, which was consistent with the original population, confirmed the scoring.