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Published: 11 July 2022
Food-seeking behavior is triggered by skin ultraviolet exposure in males Shivang Parikh, Roma Parikh, …Carmit Levy Show authors
Nature Metabolism (2022)Cite this article

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Abstract
Sexual dimorphisms are responsible for profound metabolic differences in health and behavior. Whether males and females react differently to environmental cues, such as solar ultraviolet (UV) exposure, is unknown. Here we show that solar exposure induces
food-seeking behavior, food intake, and food-seeking behavior and food intake in men, but not in women, through epidemiological evidence of approximately 3,000 individuals throughout the year. In mice, UVB exposure leads to increased food-seeking
behavior, food intake and weight gain, with a sexual dimorphism towards males. In both mice and human males, increased appetite is correlated with elevated levels of circulating ghrelin. Specifically, UVB irradiation leads to p53 transcriptional
activation of ghrelin in skin adipocytes, while a conditional p53-knockout in mice abolishes UVB-induced ghrelin expression and food-seeking behavior. In females, estrogen interferes with the p53–chromatin interaction on the ghrelin promoter, thus
blocking ghrelin and food-seeking behavior in response to UVB exposure. These results identify the skin as a major mediator of energy homeostasis and may lead to therapeutic opportunities for sex-based treatments of endocrine-related diseases.

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