Endocrinology Vol. 139, No. 9 3871-3875
Copyright © 1998 by The Endocrine Society
Leptin Is a Potent Stimulator of Spontaneous Pulsatile Growth Hormone (GH) Secretion and the GH Response to GH-Releasing Hormone1
Gloria Shaffer Tannenbaum2,
Wendy Gurd and
Martine Lapointe
Departments of Pediatrics, and Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill
University; and the Neuropeptide Physiology Laboratory, McGill
University-Montreal Childrens Hospital Research Institute, Montreal,
Québec, Canada H3H 1P3
Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Dr. Gloria S. Tannenbaum, Neuropeptide Physiology Laboratory, McGill University-Montreal Childrens Hospital Research Institute, 2300 Tupper Street, Montreal, Québec, Canada H3H 1P3. E-mail:
mcta{at}musica.mcgill.ca
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Abstract
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Pulsatile GH secretion is exquisitely sensitive to perturbations in
nutritional status, but the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown.
Leptin, a recently discovered adipose cell hormone, is thought to be a
sensor of energy stores and to regulate body mass, appetite, and
metabolism at the level of the brain. Receptors for leptin are
abundantly expressed in hypothalamic nuclei known to be involved in GH
regulation, suggesting that leptin may serve as an important hormonal
signal to the GH neuroendocrine axis in normal animals. To test this
hypothesis, we examined the effects of intracerebroventricular infusion
of recombinant murine leptin, at a dose of 1.2 µg/day for 7 days, on
both spontaneous and GH-releasing hormone (GHRH)- stimulated GH
secretion in free-moving adult male rats. Concomitant with suppressive
effects on food intake, body weight, and basal plasma insulin-like
growth factor I, insulin, and glucose concentrations, central infusion
of leptin resulted in a 2- to 3-fold augmentation of GH pulse
amplitude, 5-fold higher GH nadir levels, and a 2- to 3-fold increase
in the integrated area under the 6-h GH response curve compared with
those in vehicle-infused controls (P < 0.001). The
intracerebroventricular infusion of leptin also produced a 3- to 4-fold
increase in GHRH-induced GH release at GH trough times
(P < 0.01). These studies demonstrate a potent
stimulatory action of leptin on both spontaneous pulsatile GH secretion
and the GH response to GHRH. The results suggest that the GH-releasing
activity of leptin is mediated, at least in part, by an inhibition of
hypothalamic somatostatin release. Thus, leptin may be a critical
hormonal signal of nutritional status in the neuroendocrine regulation
of pulsatile GH secretion.
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Introduction
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THE GH neuroendocrine axis is exquisitely
sensitive to changes in nutritional status. Spontaneous pulses of GH
release are markedly suppressed in response to a whole host of
metabolic perturbations, including food deprivation, insulinopenic
diabetes, and intracellular glucopenia (see Ref. 1 for review).
Furthermore, obesity is associated with an impairment of both
spontaneous and GH-releasing hormone (GHRH)-induced GH secretion in
both humans (2) and experimental animal models (3, 4). This
hyposomatotropism probably results in decreased lipolysis (5) and may
serve to perpetuate the underlying obese state. However, the mechanisms
by which metabolic and nutritional factors contribute to the
neuroendocrine regulation of GH secretion are largely unknown.
One such possible regulator is leptin, the recently discovered adipose
cell hormone that is the protein product of the ob gene (6).
Leptin is secreted from adipocytes and is thought to be a sensor of
energy stores and to regulate appetite and metabolism at the level of
the brain (7, 8). Indeed, blood concentrations of leptin increase
during times of caloric repletion and decrease during fasting (9).
Rapidly accumulating data have implicated leptin as a humoral link
between nutrition and several neuroendocrine systems (10, 11, 12, 13).
The discovery of leptin receptor expression in the brain (14) lends
credence to this hypothesis. In fact, receptors for leptin are
abundantly expressed in those hypothalamic nuclei known to be involved
in GH regulation, including the arcuate and periventricular nuclei (15, 16), and systemic injection of leptin induces Fos protein in the
arcuate nucleus (17). Recent double labeling studies have shown the
presence of leptin receptor immunoreactivity in arcuate
GHRH-containing neurons (18). These observations suggest that
leptin may serve as an important hormonal signal in the regulation of
pulsatile GH secretion.
To test this hypothesis, we examined the effects of
intracerebroventricular (icv) infusion of leptin on both spontaneous
and GHRH-stimulated GH secretion in normal free-moving rats. Food
intake, body weight, and plasma concentrations of insulin-like growth
factor I (IGF-I), insulin, and glucose were also monitored.
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Materials and Methods
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Animals and experimental procedure
Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats (225300 g) were purchased from
Charles River Canada (St. Constant, Canada) and individually housed on
a 12-h light, 12-h dark cycle (lights on, 06001800 h) in a
temperature (22 ± 1 C)- and humidity-controlled room. Purina rat
chow (Ralston-Purina, St. Louis, MO) and tap water were available
ad libitum. Chronic icv and intracardiac venous cannulas
were implanted under sodium pentobarbitol (50 mg/kg, ip) anesthesia
using previously described techniques (19, 20). The placement of the
icv cannula was verified by both a positive drinking response to
carbachol (100 ng/10 µl) icv injection on the day after surgery and
methylene blue dye at the time of death. After surgery, the rats were
placed directly in isolation test chambers with food and
H2O freely available until body weight returned to
preoperative levels (usually within 57 days). They were then
implanted sc on the dorsum, under local lidocaine 1% anesthesia, with
osmotic minipumps (Alzet 2001, Alza Corp., Palo Alto, CA) containing
either recombinant murine leptin (Amgen, Thousand Oaks, CA; 1.2
µg/day over 7 days) or the phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) vehicle.
The icv cannula was connected to the minipump by means of a brain
infusion kit (Alzet 35 mm, Alza Corp.). During the 7-day period of
continuous infusion, 24-h food intake and body weight were monitored
daily. Food consumption was calculated by subtracting uneaten food plus
spillage from the total given. On the test day, food was removed
1.5 h before the start of sampling and was returned at the end.
Leptin or vehicle infusion was maintained during the sampling
periods.
In the first experiment, we documented the effects of icv infusion
(67 days) of either leptin (n = 7) or PBS (n = 7) on
spontaneous pulsatile GH release in free-moving rats. Blood samples
(0.4 ml) were withdrawn every 15 min over a 6-h sampling period
(10001600 h) from all animals. All blood samples were immediately
centrifuged, and the plasma was separated and stored at -20 C for
subsequent assay of GH, IGF-I, insulin and glucose. To avoid
hemodynamic disturbance, the red blood cells were resuspended in normal
saline and returned to the animal after removal of the next blood
sample.
In the second experiment, we assessed the effects of centrally infused
leptin (67 days) on GH responsiveness to GHRH. Free-moving,
chronically cannulated rats, implanted with osmotic minipumps as
described above, were administered 1 µg rat GRF-(129)NH2iv at two different time points during the 6-h
sampling periods. The times of 1100 and 1300 h were chosen because
these times reflect typical peak and trough periods of GH secretion, as
previously documented (19, 21). The GHRH peptide (provided by Dr. P.
Brazeau, Notre Dame Hospital, Montreal, Canada) was diluted in normal
saline just before use. To document the rapidity of the GH response to
GHRH, an additional blood sample was obtained 5 min after each
injection of the peptide. All animal-based procedures were approved by
the McGill University Animal Care Committee.
Hormone assays
Plasma GH concentrations were measured in duplicate by double
antibody RIA using materials supplied by the NIDDK Hormone Distribution
Program (Bethesda, MD). The averaged plasma GH values are reported in
terms of the rat GH reference preparation (rGH RP-2). The standard
curve was linear between 0.62320 ng/ml; the least detectable
concentration of plasma GH under the conditions used was 1.2 ng/ml. The
intra- and interassay coefficients of variation were 7.7% and 10.7%,
respectively, for duplicate samples of pooled plasma containing a mean
GH concentration of 60.7 ng/ml.
Plasma IGF-I concentrations were measured using a previously described
method (22). To decrease the interference of IGF-binding proteins in
the assay, the samples were prepared by acid-ethanol extraction
followed by cryoprecipitation. The IGF-I/somatomedin C rabbit
antiserum (UB3189) was obtained from the NIDDK Hormone Distribution
Program (gift from Drs. L. Underwood and J. Van Wyk). Recombinant human
IGF-I (Eli Lilly Co., Indianapolis, IN) was iodinated by the
chloramine-T method. The averaged plasma IGF-I values are reported in
terms of the recombinant human IGF-I reference preparation (Eli Lilly
Co.). The standard curve was linear between 0.125 ng/ml. The intra-
and interassay coefficients of variation were 4.8% and 14.8%,
respectively, for duplicate samples of pooled plasma containing a mean
IGF-I concentration of 0.82 ng/ml.
Plasma insulin was measured by a dextran-coated charcoal method using
guinea pig antiporcine insulin serum (23). Purified crystalline rat
insulin (lot 615-JE 6-9, Eli Lilly Co., provided by Dr. R. Chance)
served as a reference standard. The sensitivity of the assay was 0.16
ng/ml, and the intra- and interassay coefficients of variation were
8.2% and 10.3%, respectively, for duplicate samples of pooled plasma
containing a mean plasma insulin concentration of 5.68 ng/ml. Plasma
glucose was measured by an automated glucose oxidase method (Glucose
Analyzer 2, Beckman Instruments, Palo Alto, CA).
Statistical analyses
The plasma GH profiles of individual rats were analyzed using
the Cluster Analysis Program for endocrine pulse detection (24).
Briefly, a t statistic of 2.0 was selected to maintain a
maximal false positive rate of 2.5% or less, using test cluster sizes
of 2 in the prepeak nadir, peak, and postpeak nadir. Students
t tests for unpaired and paired data, as appropriate, were
used for statistical comparisons between and within experimental
groups. The integrated area under the GH response curve (AUC) was
calculated by the linear trapezoidal method. The results are expressed
as the mean ± SE. P < 0.05 was
considered significant.
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Results
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Effects of icv infusion of leptin on daily food intake and body
weight gain
The adequacy of icv leptin administration was confirmed by
observing the effects on daily food intake and body weight gain (Fig. 1
). While PBS-infused rats gained
25.4 ± 7.8 g after 7 days, leptin-treated animals lost
19.2 ± 7.6 g during the same time period. Mean daily food
intake in leptin-infused rats was significantly suppressed by 24 h
after the onset of infusion and remained significantly reduced
(
38%) throughout the 7-day observation period compared with that in
PBS-treated controls (Fig. 1
).

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Figure 1. Effects of central infusion of leptin on daily
body weight gain and food intake. Values are the mean ±
SE; the number of animals in each group is shown in
parentheses; the arrow indicates the time
of osmotic minipump implantation. *, P < 0.01 or
less compared with PBS-treated controls.
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Effects of centrally infused leptin on spontaneous pulsatile GH
release
As shown in Fig. 2A
, PBS icv-infused
control rats exhibited the typical pulsatile pattern of GH secretion.
Two major episodes of GH release were evident during the 6-h sampling
period, with most peak GH values greater than 125 ng/ml; in the
intervening trough periods, basal plasma GH levels were mostly
undetectable.

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Figure 2. Individual representative 6-h plasma GH profiles
in two PBS icv-infused control rats (A) compared with those in rats
administered leptin (1.2 µg/day over 7 days) icv (B). Central
infusion of leptin resulted in a marked stimulation of the spontaneous
GH secretory episodes. The number in parentheses is a
data point off the scale of the figure.
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Central infusion of leptin resulted in a marked stimulation of the
spontaneous GH secretory episodes (Fig. 2B
); in some rats, the
amplitude of the GH peaks reached values as high as 700 ng/ml. Cluster
analysis of GH pulse parameters showed that leptin-infused rats
exhibited a 2- to 3-fold augmentation of GH peak amplitude,
approximately 5-fold higher GH nadir levels, and a 2- to 3-fold
increase in the 6-h GH AUC (P < 0.001) compared with
those parameters in vehicle-infused controls (Fig. 3
). Neither the GH peak frequency
(3.1 ± 0.5 vs. 2.3 ± 0.2), interpeak interval
(105.0 ± 17.3 vs. 139.3 ± 19.3 min), or peak
width (91.2 ± 17.9 vs. 113.6 ± 8.6 min) were
significantly altered. Basal plasma IGF-I, insulin, and glucose
concentrations were all significantly reduced in leptin-infused rats
compared with those in PBS-treated controls (Table 1
).

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Figure 3. Cluster analysis of the effects of centrally
infused leptin on GH pulse parameters. Each bar
represents the mean ± SE; the number of animals in
each group is shown in parentheses. a,
P < 0.05 or less compared with PBS-infused
controls.
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Table 1. Effects of intracerebroventricular infusion of
leptin on basal plasma IGF-I, insulin, and glucose levels
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Effects of centrally infused leptin on GH responsiveness to
GHRH
Figure 4
illustrates the mean plasma
GH response to GHRH in animals infused with either PBS or leptin for
67 days and then challenged with GHRH. As shown in Fig. 4A
, PBS-treated controls exhibited the typical intermittent male pattern of
GH responsiveness to GHRH (21), with high GHRH-induced GH release
observed when GHRH was injected at peak times (1100 h) and only a
limited response during GH trough periods (1300 h). The magnitude of
the GH response to GHRH at 1100 h was significantly greater than
that at 1300 h (P < 0.01). In contrast,
pretreatment with leptin abolished this time-dependent difference and
resulted in a marked augmentation (3- to 4-fold) of GHRH-induced GH
release at 1300 h compared with that in PBS-infused controls (30
min GH AUC, 166.6 ± 27.0 vs. 38.7 ± 12.5
ng/ml·h; P < 0.01; Fig. 4B
). Leptin-treated rats
also exhibited a higher GH response to GHRH at 1100 h, although
this difference did not reach significance (30 min GH AUC, 185.1
± 24.3 vs. 162.7 ± 16.6 ng/ml·h). Of interest, GH
trough levels in the leptin-treated animals rarely reached undetectable
levels, in contrast to those in PBS-treated controls (see Fig. 4
).

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Figure 4. Mean plasma GH response to 1 µg GHRH iv
administered at 1100 and 1300 h in rats infused icv with either
the PBS vehicle (A) or leptin (1.2 µg/day over 7 days; B).
Pretreatment with leptin resulted in a marked augmentation of
GHRH-induced GH release at 1300 h compared with that in
PBS-infused controls. Also note elevation of GH trough levels in
leptin-treated rats. Vertical lines represent the
SE; the number of animals in each group is shown in
parentheses.
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Discussion
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These studies clearly demonstrate that leptin exerts potent
stimulatory actions on both spontaneous pulsatile GH secretion and the
GH response to GHRH. The results suggest that leptin may be an
important positive regulator of GH pulsatility in normal animals.
The present findings are congruent with accumulating data implicating
leptin as a humoral link between nutrition and several endocrine
systems, including the gonadal, adrenal, and thyroid axes (10, 11, 12).
They are also in conformity with an earlier report in the rat
demonstrating that icv administered leptin antiserum resulted in a
decrease in spontaneous GH release (13) and with a recent study in pigs
showing leptin stimulation of GH (25). Together these findings
provide support for the thesis that leptin may be a critical
hormonal signal of nutritional status to the GH neuroendocrine
axis.
The dramatic enhancement of GH pulsatility observed in the present
study (i.e. 2- to 3-fold above the normal high amplitude GH
pulses of control rats) was all the more remarkable given the sustained
anorexia induced by centrally administered leptin, since previous
studies in the rat have consistently found GH to be markedly suppressed
in nutritionally deprived states (1, 22, 23). If leptin is a
stimulatory signal to the GH neuroendocrine axis, a fall in circulating
leptin concentrations might translate into lower GH pulses. Indeed, the
observation that blood levels of leptin are significantly decreased
during fasting (10) is consistent with this idea.
The leptin-induced reductions in plasma concentrations of insulin,
glucose, and IGF-I reported here are in agreement with the results of
previous studies (26, 27). Although leptin may exert direct effects on
one or more of these parameters (28), it is also possible that these
responses are secondary to the reduction in food intake we observed, as
plasma IGF-I, insulin, and glucose are known to be impaired in poorly
nourished animals (10, 22, 23). On the other hand, as increases in GH
levels are not normally seen in nutritionally deprived states in the
rat, the increases in GH observed in these experiments are probably a
result of the administered leptin rather than of changes in nutritional
status.
The mechanism(s) by which leptin influences pulsatile GH secretion is
of interest. Current experimental evidence indicates that the pulses of
GH secretion are due to the episodic release of hypothalamic GHRH,
whereas somatostatin (SRIF) is the physiological regulator of GH trough
periods (29). The present finding of a 5-fold increase in GH nadir
levels in leptin-infused animals suggests that SRIF may be involved in
this response. Support for this concept was obtained in our GHRH
challenge experiments; pretreatment with leptin reversed the weak GH
response to GHRH observed in PBS-infused controls at GH trough times,
the latter known to be due to antagonization by the increased cyclical
release of endogenous SRIF (21). These results, therefore, suggest that
the GH-releasing activity of leptin is mediated at least in part by
inhibiting hypothalamic SRIF release into hypophyseal portal blood.
This interpretation would be in keeping with the recent in
vitro demonstration that leptin inhibits SRIF synthesis and
secretion in cultured fetal rat neurons (30).
Furthermore, it is also possible that a reduction of SRIF tone within
the hypothalamus contributed to the leptin-induced augmentation in
GH pulse amplitude, as SRIF may directly regulate GHRH release at the
level of the arcuate nucleus (29). Alternatively, GHRH secretion may be
a target for regulation by leptin, because GHRH neurons harbor leptin
receptors (18), and hypothalamic GHRH is altered both in response to
fasting (31) and in the genetically obese Zucker rat (4, 32). Finally,
the GH stimulatory actions of leptin may be mediated indirectly via
interactions with other neuronal pathways known to be both responsive
to leptin and to influence GH, such as the neuropeptide Y and CRH
neuroendocrine systems (16, 33, 34). Additional studies will be
required to identify the complete neuroendocrine pathways through which
leptin stimulates GH secretion.
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Acknowledgments
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We thank Drs Jeffrey Friedman and Jeffrey Halaas for stimulating
discussion and the gift of leptin. We are grateful to Dr. R. Chance for
the gift of rat insulin, to the NIDDK for the provision of GH and IGF-I
RIA materials, and to Julie Temko for preparation of the
manuscript.
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Footnotes
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1 This work was supported by Grant MT-6837 (to G.S.T.) from the Medical
Research Council of Canada. 
2 Chercheur de Carrière of the Fonds de la Recherche en
Santé du Québec. 
Received March 25, 1998.
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