Education
- PhD, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zürich, Switzerland, 1973
Research Interests
Dr. Berthoud is primarily interested in the role of the nervous system in the processes of maintaining energy homeostasis and nutrient intake. This includes the receptors and pathways that allow the peripheral nervous system and the brain to sense the internal metabolic state and availability of important nutrients as well as the external food environment, the neural circuits integrating this information, and the behavioral, autonomic, and endocrine effector pathways leading to regulatory actions. Interests thus impinge on the areas of obesity and anorexia, gastrointestinal and liver physiology, gut-brain interactions, autonomic nervous system, cognitive neurosciences, taste physiology, and functional foods. The largely NIH funded research activities employ behavioral, neuroanatomical, neurochemical, and electrophysiological methods. Dr. Berthoud has published over 230 papers in high impact journals and has served on the editorial board of several renowned journals.
Department: Neurobiology & Nutrition
Selected Publications
- Obesogenic effects of warm temperature involve feeding adaptation by preoptic area
leptin receptor neurons. Kaiser L, Lee N, Williams J, Smith M, Noland RC, Yu S, Morrison CD, Berthoud HR, Münzberg H.Res Sq [Preprint]. 2025 Aug 21:rs.3.rs-7032725. doi: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7032725/v1.PMID: 40894031
- Role of protein leverage versus hedonics in overeating and weight gain on palatable
diet. Spann RA, Morrison CD, Berthoud HR.Obesity (Silver Spring). 2025 Jul;33(7):1213-1214. doi: 10.1002/oby.24346. Epub 2025
Jun 25.PMID: 40556561
- Direct vagal input to the gastrointestinal tract and other viscera: Re-definition
of autonomic neuroscience or experimental artifacts? Berthoud HR, Fox EA, Münzberg H, Yu S, Kim A, Lowell BB, Neuhuber WL.Auton Neurosci. 2025 Aug;260:103310.
doi: 10.1016/j.autneu.2025.103310. Epub 2025 Jun 8.PMID: 40499395
- Gut-brain communication: Functional anatomy of vagal afferents. Berthoud HR, Münzberg H, Morrison CD, Neuhuber WL.Curr Opin Neurobiol. 2025 Aug;93:103058. doi:
10.1016/j.conb.2025.103058. Epub 2025 Jun 2.PMID: 40451136
- Protein-Restricted Diets and Their Impact on Metabolic Health and Aging. Kim SQ, Spann RA, Hill CM, Berryman CE, Berthoud HR, McDougal DH, He Y, Münzberg H, Yu S, Morrison CD.Annu Rev Nutr. 2025 Aug;45(1):269-297.
doi: 10.1146/annurev-nutr-121624-114918. Epub 2025 May 13.PMID: 40359345
- Leptin receptor neurons in the dorsomedial hypothalamus require distinct neuronal
subsets for thermogenesis and weight loss. Francois M, Kaiser L, He Y, Xu Y, Salbaum JM, Yu S, Morrison CD, Berthoud HR, Münzberg H.Metabolism. 2025 Feb;163:156100. doi: 10.1016/j.metabol.2024.156100.
Epub 2024 Dec 12.PMID: 39672257
- FGF21 acts in the brain to drive macronutrient-specific changes in behavioral motivation
and brain reward signaling. Khan MSH, Kim SQ, Ross RC, Corpodean F, Spann RA, Albarado DA, Fernandez-Kim SO,
Clarke B, Berthoud HR, Münzberg H, McDougal DH, He Y, Yu S, Albaugh VL, Soto PL, Morrison CD.Mol Metab.
2025 Jan;91:102068. doi: 10.1016/j.molmet.2024.102068. Epub 2024 Nov 19.PMID: 39571902
- History and future of leptin: Discovery, regulation and signaling. Münzberg H, Heymsfield SB, Berthoud HR, Morrison CD.Metabolism. 2024 Dec;161:156026. doi: 10.1016/j.metabol.2024.156026.
Epub 2024 Sep 7.PMID: 39245434
- FGF21 acts in the brain to drive macronutrient-specific changes in behavioral motivation
and brain reward signaling. Khan MSH, Kim SQ, Ross RC, Corpodean F, Spann RA, Albarado DA, Fernandez-Kim SO,
Clarke B, Berthoud HR, Münzberg H, McDougal DH, He Y, Yu S, Albaugh VL, Soto P, Morrison CD.bioRxiv [Preprint].
2024 Aug 26:2024.03.05.583399. doi: 10.1101/2024.03.05.583399.Update in: Mol Metab. 2025 Jan;91:102068. doi: 10.1016/j.molmet.2024.102068.PMID: 38798313
- FGF21 as a mediator of adaptive changes in food intake and macronutrient preference in response to protein restriction. Kim SQ, Spann RA, Khan MSH, Berthoud HR, Münzberg H, Albaugh VL, He Y, McDougal DH, Soto P, Yu S, Morrison CD. Neuropharmacology. 2024 Sep 1;255:110010. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2024.110010. Epub 2024 May 24.PMID: 38797244
