Yet another reason to ascertain the functional integrity of the brain and central nervous system for chronic degenerative disease and aging is presented in this interesting paper in the journal Nature Neuroscience. An editorial commenting on this study just published in Science Translational Medicine comments:

“Early on, it was thought that the cholesterol we eat is a major determinant of our circulating cholesterol levels, and many people tried to avoid eating cholesterol-rich foods like egg yolks, meat, and dairy products in order to lower their blood cholesterol. It turned out, however, that the amount of cholesterol we eat has only a modest impact on our blood cholesterol concentrations…Because the brain controls metabolic functions such as hepatic glucose production and lipid metabolism in fat, it is reasonable to think that the brain might also regulate the metabolic pathways that control circulating cholesterol. Now Perez-Tilve et al. have demonstrated in a series of studies that this is the case.”

The authors who performed the research state:

“We found that the CNS is also an important regulator of cholesterol in rodents. Inhibiting the brain’s melanocortin system by pharmacological, genetic or endocrine mechanisms increased circulating HDL cholesterol by reducing its uptake by the liver independent of food intake or body weight.”

In the course of their experiments they made this interesting observation”

“We found that the gut-brain control of cholesterol metabolism is independent of changes in food intake or body weight.”

Noting that the gut hormone ghrelin increased fat storage and cholesterol, they then determined that melanocortin in the brain controls ghrelin expression. They demonstrated that inhibiting melanocortin increased cholesterol by inhibiting its clearance from the bloodstream. They then showed that activating the brain melanocortin system decreased cholesterol levels. They conclude with this promising statement:

“…circulating levels of cholesterol are under remote, but direct, control of specific neuroendocrine circuits in the CNS…Direct or indirect pharmacological modulation of hypothalamic melanocortin tone may offer a potent way to treat hypercholesterolemia and to simultaneously target all major components of the metabolic syndrome.

And the editorial further states:

“These findings also suggest that other brain signals—nutrients, emotions, and stress, for example—could also regulate cholesterol metabolism. This may be a mechanism through which alternative medicine practices such as acupuncture and aromatherapy could regulate cardiovascular risk factors. These techniques can modulate the autonomic nervous system, which is probably the main peripheral mediator of the brain control of cholesterol metabolism.”

This is another reason why regulating the central and autonomic nervous systems is a fundamental element in our approach to treatment, and why profiling the autonomic nervous system with heart rate variability analysis is so valuable.