Cedars-Sinai investigators are unlocking new connections between stress, metabolism and obesity—a complex and rising epidemic. First-of-its-kind research led by Celine Riera, PhD, assistant professor of Biomedical Sciences and Neurology, has identified a brain circuit in mice that suppresses feeding and boosts energy expenditure in response to stress.

Riera’s team exposed laboratory mice of both sexes to predator odor. The researchers then noted which neurons expressed high levels of the protein c-Fos, indicating that the mice were activated by the scent. The resulting stress caused female mice to stop eating and rapidly increased their metabolic rate, whereas male mice ate less but displayed no change in energy expenditure.

The discovery, published in Nature Communications, gives investigators a potential target for treating obesity and stress-induced eating disorders. The next step, Riera says, is testing whether activating these neurons will promote weight loss and, if so, whether that effect is stronger in female mice compared with males.