The amount of cholesterol circulating in the bloodstream is partly regulated by the brain, a study in mice suggests.
It counters assumptions that levels are solely controlled by what we eat and by cholesterol production in the liver.
The US study in Nature Neuroscience found that a hunger hormone in the brain acts as the “remote control” for cholesterol travelling round the body.
Too much cholesterol causes hardened fatty arteries, raising the risk of a heart attack.
Cholesterol
Now scientists have found that levels are regulated in an area of the brain called the hypothalamus by the hormone ghrelin, which is known to boost the appetite.
The research found that increased levels of ghrelin not only made the mice eat more and gain weight, but also increased the levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol in their blood.
Millions of adults currently use cholesterol-busting statins to stave off heart disease, but side-effects of these include liver dysfunction, kidney failure, muscle weakness and cataracts.
But the latest findings from tests on mice, published online in Nature Neuroscience, give rise to the possibility of improved drugs to control cholesterol levels, said lead researcher Professor Matthias Tschop, of the University of Cincinnati, in the U.S.
He said: ‘We have long thought that cholesterol is exclusively regulated through dietary absorption or synthesis and secretion by the liver. Our study shows for the first time that cholesterol is also under direct “remote control” by specific neurocircuitry in the central nervous system.’
The hormone ghrelin inhibits a chemical known as MC4R in the brain and is crucial for the regulation of calorie intake and energy expenditure.
When the team blocked MC4R in the central nervous system they found this also increased cholesterol in the mice – suggesting the protein was the most important part of the ‘remote control’ system.
Although further tests are required to confirm the advantages of this finding, the scientists say their finding adds to a growing body of evidence for the central nervous system’s direct control over essential metabolic processes.
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Exposure to chemicals used in non-stick frying pans could raise the levels of cholesterol in children, U.S researchers have warned.
A study found youngsters with the highest levels of these compounds in their blood had measurably higher levels of total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein, or LDL – the so-called ‘bad’ cholesterol – compared with children with lower readings.
The scientists, from West Virginia University, said the findings do not prove exposure to these chemicals, called perfluoroalkyl acids, caused the higher readings, but they show a link that needs more study.
The researchers looked at perfluorooctanoic acid or PFOA and perfluorooctanesulfonate or PFOS for a study published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
They make their way into people through drinking water, dust, food packaging, breast milk, cord blood, microwave popcorn, air and occupational exposure, according to the researchers.
Studies in animals suggest perfluoroalkyl acid can affect the liver, which could result in changes in cholesterol levels.
Lead author Stephanie Frisbee and colleagues examined cholesterol levels in blood samples taken from more than 12,000 children in the mid-Ohio River Valley who had PFOA in their drinking water.