![Curbing Appetite with Oxytocin]()
The rare neurodevelopmental genetic disorder Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) is characterized by compulsive eating (hyperphagia). The resulting obesity is the leading cause of deaths for people with PWS. Signaling by the hormone oxytocin—which normally acts on brain receptors to inhibit people from eating—is inadequate in PWS, and giving supplemental oxytocin to mouse models of the disorder is known to reduce food intake and body weight. Eric Hollander, M.D., has received a three-year, $1.49 million grant from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to study whether oxytocin can be safely and effectively given intranasally PWS patients to reduce hyperphagia. Dr. Hollander is professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Einstein and director of the Autism and Obsessive Compulsive Spectrum Program at Montefiore Health System and Einstein. (1R01FD005106-01A3)
Posted on: Wednesday, October 04, 2017