Research
Hormonal
Acute intravenous administration of the GLP-1 receptor agonist exenatide reduces brain activation in appetite- and reward-related regions (insula, amygdala, OFC, putamen) in response to food cues in obese and T2DM individuals, leading to reduced food intake, independent of metabolic/hormonal changes.
For obese or T2DM individuals, GLP-1 receptor agonists like exenatide reduce the brain's reward response to food cues, leading to lower food intake. This effect is driven by central nervous system mechanisms, not just metabolic changes or stomach emptying, and is mediated by GLP-1 receptors.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Exenatide vs. placebo decreased food intake and food-related brain responses in T2DM patients and obese subjects (in insula, amygdala, putamen and orbitofrontal cortex). These effects were largely blocked by prior GLP-1 receptor blockade using exendin9-39.
Why this rating
Randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial with rigorous controls (pancreatic-pituitary clamp) and fMRI validation.
Source
GLP-1 Receptor Activation Modulates Appetite- and Reward-Related Brain Areas in Humans
Liselotte van Bloemendaal et al. · Diabetes · 2014
DOI 10.2337/db14-0849
crossover · n=48Cited 405×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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