I.1 Function and Dysfunction of Adipose Tissue (Paulo Matafome, Raquel Seiça)
I.2 Neuroendocrinology of Adipose Tissue-Brain Axis (Paulo Matafome, Raquel Seiça)
I.3 Neuroendocrinology of Gut-Brain Axis (Paulo Matafome, Raquel Seiça)
II. Obesity as a Risk Factor for Neurological Disease
II.1 Classification and Epidemiology of Obesity (Bruno Almeida, Bárbara Aguiar)
II.2 Diabetes and Brain Energy Metabolism (Paula Moreira)
II.3 The Impact of Adipocyte Dysfunction on Hypothalamus (Cláudia Cavadas)
II.4 Dementia: Influence of Adipokines on Brain Development and Aging (Liliana Letra, Isabel Santana)
II.5 Cerebrovascular Disease: Consequences of Obesity-Induced Endothelial Dysfunction (Cristina Sena, Liliana Letra)
II.6 Multiple Sclerosis: Implications of Obesity in Neuroinflammation (Sónia Batista)
III. Brain Function after Bariatric Surgery: Modulation of Energy Homeostasis and Cognitive Performance (Hans Eickhoff)
IV. Animal Models and Obesity Research (Raquel Seiça, Paulo Matafome)
Liliana Letra received her M.D. and Masters in Medicine from University of Coimbra, Portugal and her Neurology specialization from Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra, Portugal. She is clinical neurologist at Centro Hospitalar do Baixo Vouga, Aveiro, Portugal and has a special interest in cognitive disorders. She is also Invited Assistant of Medical Physiology at Faculty of Medicine of University of Coimbra, Portugal. She develops her investigation and PhD Project in the field of obesity and dementia and her research interest is primarily the association of metabolic diseases and cognitive function.
Raquel Seiça received her M.D. and her PhD and Aggregation in Medicine from University of Coimbra, Portugal. She is Full Professor of Physiology-Medicine and Head of the Institute of Physiology at the same University. She is also Investigator of the Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Life Sciences-IBILI-Faculty of Medicine and Collaborator Investigator in the Center for Classical and Humanistic Studies, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, University of Coimbra. Her scientific interests lie in diabetes mellitus and obesity. She is author of 130 peer-reviewed papers, 13 book chapters, 193 peer-reviewed published abstracts and 477 presentations. She supervised 3 post-doctoral projects, 9 PhD Thesis, 36 Master Thesis and 46 Research Program Training.
This compendium provides a wide view covering everything from molecular mechanisms and risk factors for neurological disorders to the effects of bariatric surgery on brain function and functional neuroimaging applied to obesity research. The impact of obesity on brain function and the development of neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory disorders has been understudied, despite the recent proliferation of obesity research. Among the topics covered are adipose biology, the adipose tissue - gut - brain axis, brain energy metabolism, dementia, cerebrovascular disease, and multiple sclerosis.