Description
Leptin is a protein product of the mouse obese gene. Mice with mutations in the obese gene that block the synthesis of Leptin have been found to be obese and diabetic and to have reduced activity, metabolism and body temperature. cDNA clones encoding Leptin have been isolated from human, simian, mouse, and rat cells. The expression of Leptin mRNA has been shown to be restricted to adipose tissue. Although regulation of fat stores is deemed to be the primary function of leptin, it also plays a role in other physiological processes, as evidenced by its multiple sites of synthesis other than fat cells, and the multiple cell types beside hypothalamic cells that have leptin receptors. Many of these additional functions are yet to be defined