EurekAlert -- University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers, for the first time, have found a messaging system in the brain that directly affects food intake and body weight. Reported in the Oct. 3, 2008 issue of Cell, the findings--from a study in mice--point to a completely new approach to treating and preventing obesity in humans. The discovery also offers hope for new ways to treat related disorders, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases--the most prevalent health problems in the United States and the rest of the developed world.
