Premium
The ins and outs of leptin receptor activation
Author(s) -
Zabeau Lennart,
Lavens Delphine,
Peelman Frank,
Eyckerman Sven,
Vandekerckhove Joël,
Tavernier Jan
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/s0014-5793(03)00440-x
Subject(s) - leptin , leptin receptor , janus kinase 2 , janus kinase , receptor , medicine , endocrinology , stat protein , cytokine receptor , signal transduction , hormone , janus kinase 1 , stat , socs3 , biology , adipocyte , chemistry , microbiology and biotechnology , stat3 , obesity , adipose tissue
The adipocyte‐derived hormone leptin signals the status of body energy stores by activating its receptor in hypothalamic nuclei. In contrast to the initial expectations, leptin treatment of human obesity was largely unsuccessful. One explanation for this is the marked leptin resistance, which likely operates in part at the receptor level. The leptin receptor is a member of the class I cytokine receptor family, which uses the Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription pathway as a major signaling route. In this review, we focus on the molecular mechanisms underlying leptin receptor activation. Different modes of leptin‐induced clustering of the ectodomains and the subsequent signaling events will be discussed.