Henning Fenselau
@henningfenselau.bsky.social
Neurobiologist at the Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research www.sf.mpg.de/research/fenselau
🧠 Great Impromptu seminar with @henningfenselau.bsky.social (@mpi-metabolism.bsky.social) on plasticity in brain–body control of metabolism, with insights into his work on deciphering the neural principles governing systemic metabolism regulation. Thank you, Henning, & host @mrescigno.bsky.social!
Postdoc position in systems neuroscience! Excited to recruit a postdoc for my lab at the University of Bonn. 🔬 In vivo physiology (Neuropixels, 2P/miniscope) 🐭 Head-fixed & freely moving behaviour 💡 Optogenetics/chemogenetics ⏳ Start: ASAP | Application deadline: 28.02.2026 More info below ⬇️
Thanks to @nature.com for featuring our work in this piece on genetically-encoded sensors. The article does a great job highlighting their importance for both basic research and translational impact, such as in our lab's research on serotonin. www.nature.com/articles/d41...
How genetically encoded sensors have lit up neuroscience
Tools that track specific molecules in neurons have enabled researchers to probe previously unexplored aspects of neurobiology — although important caveats remain.
nature.com
lab preprint! Interopceptive predictions are central to many brain-body interactions theories, but it's unclear if/how they affect bodily physiology. We (fearless Einav Litvak et al) show that insular cortex predictions are essential for glucose homeostasis-THREAD.. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Insular cortex predictions regulate glucose homeostasis
Brain-body interactions are essential for physical and emotional homeostasis. The brain uses information from the external world to predict upcoming bodily changes. This process involves interoceptive...
biorxiv.org
Wonderful to have @henningfenselau.bsky.social visit us at #UTSouthwestern. Fantastic talk on targeting neural plasticity in obesity. @maxplanck.de | @unicologne.bsky.social | @zigmanlab.bsky.social
🤩 I’m beyond excited to finally share our paper! 🎉 It’s been a long journey and a true team effort. Congratulations to our outstanding first authors, @lcreimon.bsky.social and Ayden Gouveia, and to all of the co-authors who made this possible 🙌! www.nature.com/articles/s42...
Fat sensory cues in early life program central response to food and obesity - Nature Metabolism
Non-nutritive sensory components of high-fat diet, such as bacon flavour, are sufficient to impair metabolic health in offspring in mice.
nature.com
My passion is to bring together people from different worlds. Science Kitchen started with @pamado.bsky.social and Joana Lamego. We made it real: chefs+scientists side by side @champalimaudf.bsky.social - curiosity meets flavor. Discovery became a shared experience. Just the beginning.
Exciting that our first post gets to share that our paper in Nature Communications is now available! This work uncovers the circuits that mediate sex differences in responsiveness to social stress, but don't take our word for it, check it out! Congrats, Marie Francois and team 🎉
Amygdala AVPR1A mediates susceptibility to chronic social isolation in female mice - Nature Communications
Females are more sensitive to social exclusion and loneliness, risk factors for anxiety and stressrelated disorders. Here, the authors identified molecular signals in the amygdala that make females mo...
nature.com
New essay in @currentbiology.bsky.social special brain-body issue! Fly lab meets psychiatrist: how bodily signals shape cognition and mental health. Great collaboration with Albino Oliveira-Maia showing @champalimaudf.bsky.social discovery ↔️ clinic at its best. www.cell.com/current-biol...
From cognition in the body to the body in cognition
Carlos Ribeiro and Albino Oliveira-Maia propose how brain–body interactions may inform the study of ‘higher’ cognitive functions such as learning and memory across model systems.
cell.com
Rockefeller's Jeff Friedman has won the 2025 Albany Medical Center Prize, one of the nation’s most prestigious prizes in biomedicine. Friedman is recognized for his discovery of leptin, which established a biological basis for obesity. Congrats, Jeff!
Jeffrey M. Friedman is awarded the 2025 Albany Medical Center Prize - News
Jeffrey M. Friedman has been awarded the 2025 Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research, one of the nation's most prestigious prizes in biomedicine. Friedman, who is Rockefeller's Marilyn M. Simpson Professor, a Howard Hughes Medic...
rockefeller.edu
What a great Titisee Conference! “Warm, cold, and life” brought together brilliant minds exploring how temperature shapes the brain, physiology, and behaviour — from mice, wild animals to humans. Thanks to Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds for the support!
🚨 We’re hiring! 🧪 @uvabio.bsky.social UVA Biology is recruiting multiple tenure-track Assistant Professors in neuroscience as part of a $75M Brain & Neuroscience Initiative. 🧠 Apply by Oct 15, 2025. Start Aug 2026. 👉 apply.interfolio.com/172892 #Neuroscience #FacultyJobs #NeuroJobs #Biology #UVA
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We are proud of Omprakash Singh's new study just out in Cell Reports. Supported by Sepideh Sheybani-Deloui et al, Om's work identifies GHSR expressing SCN neurons as regulating food intake + feed efficiency at a single time of day, accounting for at least 7% of a mouse's BW doi.org/10.1016/j.ce...
What's next for the #BetleyLab? We're diving deep into #EXERCISE! 🏃♀️💪 Our emerging studies show exercise doesn't just change your body – it literally rewires brain circuits and impacts #dopamine response. It’s a whole new world of #body-brain interaction. Stay tuned !
🚀 What’s it like to launch a new lab? Hans-Georg Sprenger shares challenges, early wins & the joy of mentoring in molecular metabolism research. @mpiage.bsky.social Read the interview: febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/... #ScienceCareers #Mentoring #ResearchLife
The brain is the master regulator of food intake and energy balance. A brilliant new @cellpress.bsky.social review, including the mechanism of GLP-1 drugs, by @clemmensenc.bsky.social and colleagues, open-access www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...
‼️ We're looking for a postdoc to join our team starting January 1st, 2026! ‼️ Are you curious about how exercise promotes positive changes at the molecular level in obesity and diabetes? If so, consider applying or reach out with any questions. ddz.de/job/postdoct... ddz.de/en/research/...
Postdoctoral Researcher (Ph.D./Dr. rer. nat., m/f/div., E13 TV-L, 100%) - Deutsches Diabetes-Zentrum (DDZ)
Institut für Klinische Biochemie und Pathobiochemie (Direktor: Univ.-Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Hadi Al-Hasani), Nachwuchsforschungsgruppe Crosstalk (Leiterin: Melanie Mittenbühler, Dr.) (25019)
ddz.de
And you thought #metformin lowered glucose via the liver? Here loss-of-function and gain-of-function studies suggest that VMH Rap1 is indispensable for the antidiabetic effects of metformin in mice #diabetes www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Low-dose metformin requires brain Rap1 for its antidiabetic action
Metformin lowers blood glucose by inhibiting Rap1 in ventromedial hypothalamic neurons that regulate glucose balance.
science.org
How do animals decide if they should forage for food or stay home to take care of newborn offspring? Whose needs come first? For my PhD work now out in Nature, we examined how hunger and parenting neurons interact and are reshaped postpartum in mice 🧵⬇️ www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A hypothalamic circuit that modulates feeding and parenting behaviours - Nature
Single-cell transcriptomic analysis of mouse hypothalamus and behavioural experiments show that specific hypothalamic networks regulate conflicting feeding versus parenting behaviours of female mice.
nature.com
Finally… BBQ, and excellent and very creative journal club on our rooftop! Enjoying Cologne summer with the amazing team!
Not feeling hungry after cooking? Janice Bulk chatted about the latest study by the Steculorum Lab in an interview with German radio. 👃 🍲 📻 Great job, Janice! www.swr.de/leben/gesund...
Geruch von Essen kann Sättigung auslösen – neue Erkenntnisse
Essverhalten: Schon der Geruch von Essen kann das Sättigungsgefühl auslösen – zeigen Forschende am Max-Planck-Institut. Bei Übergewicht scheint dieser Mechanismus gestört zu sein.
swr.de
Stephanie A. Fernandes selected for Minerva Fast Track Programme! 🎉 Congrats on this amazing achievement! @stephalcantara.bsky.social @cga-age.bsky.social www.age.mpg.de/428071/25071...
Stephanie A. Fernandes selected for the Minerva Fast Track Programme
age.mpg.de
Excited to announce my new book FOOD INTELLIGENCE coauthored with brilliant journalist @juliabelluz.bsky.social! Cutting through the confusion about diet & health, #FoodIntelligence describes the fascinating science of how food both nourishes & harms us. www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/671334...
Food Intelligence by Julia Belluz, Kevin Hall, PhD: 9780593332306 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
The essential guide for understanding what you’re eating, and the forces that are driving you to eat it. Nutrition isn’t rocket science; it’s harder. There are new diet fads, bold...
penguinrandomhouse.com
Molecular mechanisms and brain regions that promote hyperphagia in the clinical expression of fructose-mediated #obesity www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Fructose-induced synaptic and neuronal adaptations at Neuropeptide Y/agouti-related peptide neurons
Fructose is a naturally-occurring sugar, consumed in excess as sweeteners, and is linked to the development of obesity. Fructose is consumed with gluc…
sciencedirect.com
The gut hormone mimetic era in medicine is just getting started www.nature.com/articles/s42... erictopol.substack.com/p/the-gut-br...
Shaping the future of cardiometabolic innovation: advances and opportunities - Nature Metabolism
Obesity is a global public health concern closely linked to cardiometabolic complications. This Comment provides our views on recent breakthroughs, emerging innovations and future needs of therapeutic...
nature.com
Obesity is a global public health concern closely linked to cardiometabolic complications. This Comment provides views on recent breakthroughs, emerging innovations and future needs of therapeutic interventions to counteract obesity and its associated health risks. www.nature.com/articles/s42...
Shaping the future of cardiometabolic innovation: advances and opportunities - Nature Metabolism
Obesity is a global public health concern closely linked to cardiometabolic complications. This Comment provides our views on recent breakthroughs, emerging innovations and future needs of therapeutic...
nature.com
We have a new research group at MPI for Metabolism Research!👩🔬 A warm welcome to @svaltcheva.bsky.social !👋 For a first impression find her introduction below⬇️ and further informations under sf.mpg.de/2112068/Silvan
📅 Next week, we are excited to welcome Dr. @yoavlivneh.bsky.social from Weizmann Institute of Science. He will share his research on the #insular #cortex. 🥳 As always, everyone is welcome to join us at our Institute, and registration is not necessary! All info here: www.psych.mpg.de/events/40140...
