Ghrelin, an acylated peptide originally identified in rat stomach as the endogenous ligand for
the growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHS-R), stimulates both food intake and growth
hormone (GH) secretion. Ghrelin is predominantly synthesized by a subset of endocrine
cells in the oxyntic gland of human and rat stomach. Previous studies using
immunohistochemistry have shown that ghrelin is also present in the hypothalamic arcuate
nucleus, a region critical for the control of feeding and GH secretion, but its expression …