Evidence for a Relationship between Body Mass and Energy Metabolism in the Human Brain

Abstract

Cerebral energy metabolism has been suggested to have an important function in body weight regulation. We therefore examined whether there is a relationship between body mass and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) metabolism in the human brain. On the basis of our earlier findings indicating a neuroprotective preferential energy supply of the brain, as compared with peripheral muscle on experimentally induced hypoglycemia, we examined whether this physiological response is preserved also in low-weight and obese participants. We included 45 healthy male subjects with a body mass index (BMI) ranging from 17 to 44 kg/m2. Each participant underwent a hypoglycemic glucose-clamp intervention, and the ATP metabolism, that is, the content of high-energy phosphates phosphocreatine (PCr) and ATP, was measured repeatedly by 31phosphor magnetic resonance spectroscopy (31P-MRS) in the cerebral cortex and skeletal muscle. Results show an inverse correlation between BMI and high-energy phosphate content in the brain ( P<0.01), whereas there was no such relationship found between skeletal muscle and BMI. The hypoglycemic clamp intervention did not affect the ATP metabolism in both tissues. Our data show an inverse correlation between BMI and cerebral high-energy phosphate content in healthy humans, suggesting a close relationship between energetic supply of the brain and body weight regulation.