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Overnutrition caused by overeating is associated with insulin and leptin resistance through IKKbeta activation and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in the hypothalamus. Here we show that physical exercise suppresses hyperphagia and associated hypothalamic IKKbeta/NF-kappaB activation by a mechanism dependent upon the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin (IL)-6. The disruption of hypothalamic-specific IL-6 action blocked the beneficial effects of exercise on the re-balance of food intake and insulin and leptin resistance. This molecular mechanism, mediated by physical activity, involves the anti-inflammatory protein IL-10, a core inhibitor of IKKbeta/NF-kappaB signaling and ER stress. We report that exercise and recombinant IL-6 requires IL-10 expression to suppress hyperphagia-related obesity. Moreover, in contrast to control mice, exercise failed to reverse the pharmacological activation of IKKbeta and ER stress in C3H/HeJ mice deficient in hypothalamic IL-6 and IL-10 signaling. Hence, inflammatory signaling in the hypothalamus links beneficial physiological effects of exercise to the central action of insulin and leptin., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Hypothalamic inflammation is a common feature of experimental obesity. Dietary fats are important triggers of this process, inducing the activation of toll-like receptor-4 (TLR4) signaling and endoplasmic reticulum stress. Microglia cells, which are the cellular components of the innate immune system in the brain, are expected to play a role in the early activation of diet-induced hypothalamic inflammation. Here, we use bone marrow transplants to generate mice chimeras that express a functional TLR4 in the entire body except in bone marrow--derived cells or only in bone marrow--derived cells. We show that a functional TLR4 in bone marrow--derived cells is required for the complete expression of the diet-induced obese phenotype and for the perpetuation of inflammation in the hypothalamus. In an obesity-prone mouse strain, the chemokine CX3CL1 (fractalkine) is rapidly induced in the neurons of the hypothalamus after the introduction of a high-fat diet. The inhibition of hypothalamic fractalkine reduces diet-induced hypothalamic inflammation and the recruitment of bone marrow--derived monocytic cells to the hypothalamus; in addition, this inhibition reduces obesity and protects against diet-induced glucose intolerance. Thus, fractalkine is an important player in the early induction of diet-induced hypothalamic inflammation, and its inhibition impairs the induction of the obese and glucose intolerance phenotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]