Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology · Neuroscience
Professor Jong-Woo Sohn's research lab focuses on the neural circuits and molecular mechanisms underlying energy balance, metabolism, and neuronal excitability. The lab investigates how hypothalamic neurons, particularly POMC and NPY/AgRP neurons, regulate appetite and energy homeostasis, with a particular emphasis on signaling pathways involving leptin, insulin, and mTOR in the ventromedial hypothalamus. Additionally, the lab explores the pathophysiological mechanisms of psychiatric drug-induced metabolic syndrome, such as risperidone-induced obesity, and the role of non-cell-autonomous signaling in focal epileptogenesis. Their work integrates electrophysiology, optogenetics, transcriptomics, and mouse models to uncover cellular and circuit-level mechanisms in metabolic and neurological disorders.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
The central nervous system (CNS) controls food intake and energy expenditure via tight coordinations between multiple neuronal populations. Specifically, two distinct neuronal populations exist in the arcuate nucleus of hypothalamus (ARH): the anorexigenic (appetite-suppressing) pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) neurons and the orexigenic (appetite-increasing) neuropeptide Y (NPY)/agouti-related peptide (AgRP) neurons. The coordinated regulation of neuronal circuit involving these neurons is essential
It has been shown that the activation of G(q)-coupled receptors (G(q)PCRs) in cardiac myocytes inhibits the G protein-gated inwardly rectifying K(+) current (I(GIRK)) via receptor-specific depletion of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP(2)). In this study, we investigated the mechanism of the receptor-mediated regulation of I(GIRK) in acutely isolated hippocampal CA1 neurons by the muscarinic receptor agonist, carbachol (CCh), and the group I metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) agoni
This study shows that neurons carrying somatic mutations in MTOR lead to focal epileptogenesis via non-cell-autonomous hyperexcitability of nearby nonmutated neurons. ANN NEUROL 2021;90:285-299.
Our results demonstrate that specific PI3K catalytic subunits are responsible for the acute effects of leptin and insulin on VMH SF1 neurons, and provide insights into the cellular mechanisms of leptin and insulin action on VMH SF1 neurons that regulate energy balance and glucose homeostasis.
We showed in our previous study that in hippocampal CA1 neurons the stimulation of muscarinic receptors inhibited the GIRK current (I(GIRK)) via a PLC/PKC pathway, whereas group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluR) inhibited I(GIRK) via a PLA(2)/arachidonic acid pathway. In this study, we present evidence that receptor-mediated signalling pathways activated by the two G(q)-coupled receptors (G(q)PCRs) converge on the inhibition of GIRK channel-PIP(2) interaction. I(GIRK) was activated in a
Atypical antipsychotics such as risperidone cause drug-induced metabolic syndrome. However, the underlying mechanisms remain largely unknown. Here, we report a new mouse model that reliably reproduces risperidone-induced weight gain, adiposity, and glucose intolerance. We found that risperidone treatment acutely altered energy balance in C57BL/6 mice and that hyperphagia accounted for most of the weight gain. Transcriptomic analyses in the hypothalamus of risperidone-fed mice revealed that rispe
The anorexigenic effect of serotonergic compounds has largely been attributed to activation of serotonin 2C receptors (Htr2cs). Using mouse genetic models in which Htr2c can be selectively deleted or restored (in Htr2c-null mice), we investigate the role of Htr2c in forebrain Sim1 neurons. Unexpectedly, we find that Htr2c acts in these neurons to promote food intake and counteract the anorectic effect of serotonergic appetite suppressants. Furthermore, Htr2c marks a subset of Sim1 neurons in the
Triptans are a class of commonly prescribed antimigraine drugs. Here, we report a previously unrecognized role for them to suppress appetite in mice. In particular, frovatriptan treatment reduces food intake and body weight in diet-induced obese mice. Moreover, the anorectic effect depends on the serotonin (5-HT) 1B receptor (Htr1b). By ablating Htr1b in four different brain regions, we demonstrate that Htr1b engages in spatiotemporally segregated neural pathways to regulate postnatal growth and
Group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (group I mGluRs; mGluR1 and mGluR5) exert diverse effects on neuronal and synaptic functions, many of which are regulated by intracellular Ca(2+). In this study, we characterized the cellular mechanisms underlying Ca(2+) mobilization induced by (RS)-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine (DHPG; a specific group I mGluR agonist) in the somata of acutely dissociated rat hippocampal neurons using microfluorometry. We found that DHPG activates mGluR5 to mobilize intracel
Melanocortin-4 receptors (MC4Rs) expressed by the central nervous system are essential regulators of energy homeostasis, and Mc4r mutation is the most common cause of human monogenic obesity. Notably, patients with obesity carrying Mc4r mutations are protected against obesity-induced hypertension, and MC4R agonists elevate blood pressure (BP). Although increased sympathetic tone by MC4Rs is suggested to underlie this phenotype, the detailed mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we investigate how MC4
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