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Leptin, a hormone secreted from adipose tissue, plays an important role in reproductive physiology. It has been shown to stimulate the reproductive system by rescuing the sterility of leptin-deficient mice and advancing the onset of puberty in normal mice. Although leptin is not critical for the biology of pregnancy in mice, its ability to reduce food intake is blunted in midgestation suggesting that late pregnancy may be a leptin-resistant state. Modifier genes originating from the Balb/cJ genetic background profoundly alter the sterile-obese phenotype of ob/ob mice by reducing their obesity and stimulating their reproductive system despite the absence of leptin. The mechanism of leptin's action on the reproductive system remains to be determined but is likely to be mediated by multiple factors. Key Words: leptin, adipose tissue, reproductive physiology, sterility, pregnancy, leptin-resistant state, ob/ob gene

Numerous studies have revealed an association between nutritional status, adiposity, and reproductive maturity. The role of leptin, a hormone secreted from adipose tissue, in the onset of reproductive function was [...]

Leptin, an adipocyte-derived hormone, informs neuroendocrine pathways about the status of energy stores in adipose tissue. The integration of this peripheral signal in hypothalamic networks results in activation of peripheral metabolic pathways that control energy build-up and expenditure. Firing of the reproductive cascade of hormones at puberty and its regulation in adults is tightly associated with energy metabolism and is thus regulated by leptin. This article provides an update of past and present theories that link nutrition and reproduction in light of new research.