Urbana Campus Research Calendar (OVCRI)

Research Topics
Drug Discovery, Endocrinology, Metabolic Regulation, Neurobiology, Optogenetics, Reproductive Biology
Research Description
Neural circuitry regulating feeding and emotion
Feeding behavior is largely controlled by conserved neural circuitry located in the hypothalamus. These neural circuits are interconnected with brain circuits that regulate diverse physiological and emotional processes, and dysfunction in this circuitry is likely at the core of many metabolic and psychiatric disorders, such as anorexia nervosa and obesity.
To better understand the neural circuitry controlling feeding, and how this circuitry is altered in pathological conditions, we focus our studies on the central melanocortin system.