Topic: Ketone bodies, ketosis & Keto diet: Controlling the hungry mind.

This week you learned about ketogenesis, i.e. formation of ketone  bodies, in liver cells in response to starvation or as a consequence of  untreated diabetes. You also heard about the AMPK enzyme and that it  plays an important role in the regulation of lipolysis. I also mentioned  the concept of ketogenic diets (KD) which have become very popular in  recent years. The proponents of the ketogenic diet and users of “keto  pills” claim that it is an easy, fast and natural way of achieving  weight reduction and appetite control.

This week:

• Please read this scientific article: Paoli  A., et al. Ketosis, ketogenic diet and food intake control: A complex  relationship. Frontiers in Psychology Vol6(27): 1-9 (2015)
• Also do some research on NCBI Pubmed (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed).
• Then discuss the following aspects with your classmates:
  1. What are ketone bodies? How and where are they formed?
  2. What is/are the key concept(s) of the ketogenic diet?
  3. What are potential long term risks of a prolonged ketogenic diet discussed in the paper?
  4. Which hormones are mentioned in the paper which are important for  the control appetite? Which ones are anorexigenic and which one are  orexigenic?
  5. According to the paper, the energy status-sensing enzyme AMPK also  plays a role in appetite control. How are ketone bodies connected to  AMPK function?