Perifornical lateral neurons

Alam, Md. N., Gong, H., Alam, T., Jaganath, R., McGinty, D., Szymusiak, R. (2002). Sleep-waking discharge patterns of neurons recorded in the rat perifornical lateral hypothalamic area. J. Physiol. 538, 619-31. 

The lateral hypothalamic area has been identified as a feeding centre by studies involving electric stimulation and discrete lesions. Neurons in the lateral hypothalamic area and the neighbouring perifornical area express neuropeptides that stimulate feeding when injected into cerebral ventricles (orexins 1 and 2, melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH)). 

Narcolepsy, a sleep disorder characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness and cataplexy, may be caused by the lack of hypocretin mRNA and peptides in humans (Peyron et al., 2000) or a disruption of the hypocretin receptor 2 or its ligand in dogs and mice (Lin et al., 1999 Chemelli et al., 1999). Hypocretin-containing neurons are located exclusively in the dorsomedial, lateral, and perifornical hypothalamic areas (Peyron et al., 1998). Two hypocretin sequences, Hcrt-1 (orexin-A) and Hcrt-2 (orexin-B), are generated from a single preprohypocretin (De Lecea et al., 1998 Peyron et al, 1998 Sakurai et al, 1998). Axons from these neurons are found in the hypothalamus, locus coeruleus (LC), raphe nuclei, tuberomamillary nucleus, midline thalamus, all levels of spinal cord, sympathetic and parasympathetic centers, and many other brain regions... 

The diffuse part of the TMN consists of a small group of neurons scattered within the lateral hypothalamic area, the posterior hypothalamic region, the perifornical area, the supramammillary nucleus, and the dorsomedial hypothalamic nucleus. 

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