Heart failure has a high mortality rate, and current therapies offer limited benefits. The authors demonstrate that activation of the central nervous system leptin-melanocortin pathway confers remarka Show more
Heart failure has a high mortality rate, and current therapies offer limited benefits. The authors demonstrate that activation of the central nervous system leptin-melanocortin pathway confers remarkable protection against progressive heart failure following severe myocardial infarction. The beneficial cardiac-protective actions of leptin require activation of brain melanocortin-4 receptors and elicit improvements in cardiac substrate oxidation, cardiomyocyte contractility, Ca Show less