Research

Hormonal

Blocking GHSR receptors in the VTA attenuates rebound feeding after fasting and blunts the feeding response to restricted feeding schedules.

This finding suggests that the brain's reward system, specifically the VTA, plays a critical role in the 'catch-up' eating that happens after fasting. Blocking this specific pathway can reduce the intense urge to eat after a fast, highlighting the importance of the brain's reward circuitry in appetite regulation.

GoodRefutesHIGH confidence
Intra-VTA delivery of a selective GHSR antagonist blocked the orexigenic effect of circulating ghrelin and blunted rebound feeding following fasting.
Alfonso Abizaid et al. · Journal of Clinical Investigation · 2006

Why this rating

Strong evidence from knockout models and antagonist infusions.

Source

Ghrelin modulates the activity and synaptic input organization of midbrain dopamine neurons while promoting appetite

Alfonso Abizaid et al. · Journal of Clinical Investigation · 2006

DOI 10.1172/jci29867

mechanism_onlyCited 970×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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