Researchers from the Turku PET Centre, Finland, have observed that the length of daylight hours impacts opioid receptor levels in brown fat. When daylight hours shorten, the receptor activity levels elevate. A similar phenomenon also takes place in the brain. Both phenomena help people and animals in the adaptation to seasonal changes.
Professor and Chief Physician, InFLAMES group leader Pirjo Nuutila is receiving the 2022 Novo Nordisk Foundation Lecture prize for her contribution to research on metabolic diseases such as overweight and diabetes.
InFLAMES (Innovation Ecosystem based on the Immune System) is a Finnish research flagship that aims at identifying novel drug targets using the most modern technological platforms and finding novel diagnostic tools to identify the patients benefitting from personalised therapies.
Researchers from the Turku PET Centre and Technical University of Munich have discovered a new mechanism controlling satiation. According to the recently published study, the hormone secretin induces satiation by activating brown adipose tissue.