Dr. Nillni is an Emeritus Professor in the Departments of Medicine and the Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry at Brown University. He is currently retired. He has been a member of the Brown faculty since 1989. He has a master's in Biological Sciences from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and a Ph.D. from the Hadassah Medical School, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel, where he studied the Biochemistry of Parasitic Protozoa. Dr. Nillni completed his post-doctoral fellowship in membrane biology of parasitic protozoa at Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston. He then became a faculty member in 1984. He subsequently shifted his research to the field of Neuroendocrinology and Cell Biology when he moved to Brown University. Since then, he has studied the role of neuropeptide hormones and nutrient sensors in the hypothalamus interacting with the adipocyte hormone leptin and other vital components of the regulatory system controlling food intake energy homeostasis. His recent textbook, "Textbook of Energy Balance, Neuropeptide Hormones, and Neuroendocrine Function" (Springer International), represents a vast body of the latest knowledge in neuropeptides and their action on energy balance. It contains a detailed and comprehensive account of specific hypothalamic peptides controlling energy balance and food intake.
Dr. Nillni has contributed substantially to the neurobiology of neuropeptide hormones controlling energy balance. His laboratory has produced seminal work demonstrating that neuropeptide hormones' biosynthesis from their pro-hormones is nutritionally regulated. These nutritional changes affect the activity of the Pro-hormone Convertases 1 and 2 (PC1 And PC2), essential in the maturation of all pro-hormones. Most of his studies focused on pro-Thyrotropin Releasing Hormone (pro-TRH) and pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) polypeptides directly involved in energy homeostasis. He has described how hormones and neurotransmitters, including leptin, α-MSH, Norepinephrine (NE), and thyroid hormone regulate pro-TRH at transcriptional, protein biosynthesis, and secretion levels in the hypothalamus. The universal finding derived from these studies demonstrated that besides affecting TRH transcription and pro-TRH biosynthesis, leptin, NE, α-MSH, and thyroid hormone also affect the maturation of PC1 and PC2. This tightly regulated mechanism to produce biologically active peptides occurs for most peptide hormones produced in the hypothalamus. A breakthrough study from his laboratory in the biology of leptin was that aside from regulating peptide hormone expression, leptin also controls pro-hormone processing by regulating PC1 and PC2. This novel concept was introduced in 2004 to the obesity field, which provided the basis for many studies conducted today in other laboratories. In collaboration with his colleagues at Harvard University, his laboratory also demonstrated for the first time that leptin regulates the TRH and POMC gene expression through activation of the STAT3 signaling pathway. His laboratory showed for the first time that the Diacetyl enzyme Sirt1, present in the hypothalamus, operates as a nutrient sensor that regulates food intake. He also revealed that endoplasmic reticulum stress, developed in the hypothalamus of the obese, prevents the proper protein folding and processing of POMC, which is an essential anorectic precursor to maintaining body weight in check.
Through his 26 years at Brown, Dr. Nillni trained more than 50 undergraduate students in their independent study class. He has mentored summer interns, numerous graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows. He was an executive member of the Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry Ph.D. graduate program and the Ph.D. and MD/Ph.D. admission committees. In addition to undergraduate courses, Dr. Nillni taught for 18 years a graduate class on protein processing and trafficking, a subject on cell biology that did not exist in the Molecular and Cellular Biology graduate program. Dr. Nillni has published over 75 manuscripts, including reviews, a book on energy balance, obesity, and chapter books. He was on the editorial board of various prestigious scientific journals and has been a reviewer for nineteen journals, including Nature, Cell, Journal of Biological Chemistry, and Journal of Clinical Investigation. He was also a member of several national and international review committees, including the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health Study Sections, for over 24 years. Dr. Nillni is a European Science Foundation and College of Experts member.
| Cakir I, Nillni EA. "Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress, the Hypothalamus, and Energy Balance." Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism, vol. 30, no. 3, 2019, pp. 163-176. |
| Kim GH, Shi G, Somlo DR, Haataja L, Song S, Long Q, Nillni EA, Low MJ, Arvan P, Myers MG Jr, Qi L. "Hypothalamic ER-associated degradation regulates POMC maturation, feeding, and age-associated obesity." J Clin Invest. , vol. 128, no. 3, 2018, pp. 1125-1140. |
| Yu S, Cheng H, François M, Qualls-Creekmore E, Huesing C, He Y, Jiang Y, Gao H, Xu Y, Zsombok A, Derbenev AV, Nillni EA, Burk DH, Morrison CD, Berthoud HR, Münzberg H. "Preoptic leptin signaling modulates energy balance independent of body temperature regulation." eLife, vol. 7, 2018. |
| Textbook of Energy Balance, Neuropeptide Hormones, and Neuroendocrine Function. edited by Eduardo A. Nillni, 2018. |
| Nillni EA. "The metabolic sensor Sirt1 and the hypothalamus: Interplay between peptide hormones and pro-hormone convertases." Molecular and cellular endocrinology, vol. 438, 2016, pp. 77-88. |
| Toorie, Anika M., Cyr, Nicole E., Steger, Jennifer S., Beckman, Ross, Farah, George, Nillni, Eduardo A. "The Nutrient and Energy Sensor Sirt1 Regulates the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) Axis by Altering the Production of the Prohormone Convertase 2 (PC2) Essential in the Maturation of Corticotropin-releasing Hormone (CRH) from Its Prohormone in Male Rats." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 291, no. 11, 2016, pp. 5844-5859. |
| Cyr, Nicole E., Steger, Jennifer S., Toorie, Anika M., Yang, Jonathan Z., Stuart, Ronald, Nillni, Eduardo A. "Central Sirt1 Regulates Body Weight and Energy Expenditure Along With the POMC-Derived Peptide α-MSH and the Processing Enzyme CPE Production in Diet-Induced Obese Male Rats." Endocrinology, vol. 156, no. 3, 2015, pp. 961-974. |
| Faulkner, Latrice D., Dowling, Abigail R., Stuart, Ronald C., Nillni, Eduardo A., Hill, Jennifer W. "Reduced Melanocortin Production Causes Sexual Dysfunction in Male Mice With POMC Neuronal Insulin and Leptin Insensitivity." Endocrinology, vol. 156, no. 4, 2015, pp. 1372-1385. |
| Cyr, Nicole E., Steger, Jennifer S., Toorie, Anika M., Yang, Jonathan Z., Stuart, Ronald, Nillni, Eduardo A. "Central Sirt1 Regulates Body Weight and Energy Expenditure Along With the POMC-Derived Peptide α-MSH and the Processing Enzyme CPE Production in Diet-Induced Obese Male Rats." Endocrinology, vol. 155, no. 7, 2014, pp. 2423-2435. |
| Toorie, Anika M., Nillni, Eduardo A. "Minireview: Central Sirt1 Regulates Energy Balance via the Melanocortin System and Alternate Pathways." Molecular endocrinology (Baltimore, Md.), vol. 28, no. 9, 2014, pp. 1423-1434. |
| Mercer, A. J., Stuart, R. C., Attard, C. A., Otero-Corchon, V., Nillni, E. A., Low, M. J. "Temporal changes in nutritional state affect hypothalamic POMC peptide levels independently of leptin in adult male mice." AJP: Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 306, no. 8, 2014, pp. E904-E915. |
| Newton, A. Jamila, Hess, Simon, Paeger, Lars, Vogt, Merly C., Fleming Lascano, Jenifer, Nillni, Eduardo A., Brüning, Jens C., Kloppenburg, Peter, Xu, Allison W. "AgRP Innervation onto POMC Neurons Increases with Age and Is Accelerated with Chronic High-Fat Feeding in Male Mice." Endocrinology, vol. 154, no. 1, 2013, pp. 172-183. |
| Chiappini, Franck, Ramadoss, Preeti, Vella, Kristen R., Cunha, Lucas L., Ye, Felix D., Stuart, Ronald C., Nillni, Eduardo A., Hollenberg, Anthony N. "Family members CREB and CREM control thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) expression in the hypothalamus." Molecular and cellular endocrinology, vol. 365, no. 1, 2013, pp. 84-94. |
| Cyr, N. E., Toorie, A. M., Steger, J. S., Sochat, M. M., Hyner, S., Perello, M., Stuart, R., Nillni, E. A. "Mechanisms by which the orexigen NPY regulates anorexigenic -MSH and TRH." AJP: Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 304, no. 6, 2013, pp. E640-E650. |
| Nie, Ying, Ferrini, Monica G., Liu, Yanjun, Anghel, Adrian, Espinosa, Enma V. Paez, Stuart, Ronald C., Lutfy, Kabirullah, Nillni, Eduardo A., Friedman, Theodore C. "Morphine treatment selectively regulates expression of rat pituitary POMC and the prohormone convertases PC1/3 and PC2." Peptides, vol. 47, 2013, pp. 99-109. |
| Cakir, I., Cyr, N. E., Perello, M., Litvinov, B. P., Romero, A., Stuart, R. C., Nillni, E. A. "Obesity Induces Hypothalamic Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress and Impairs Proopiomelanocortin (POMC) Post-translational Processing." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 288, no. 24, 2013, pp. 17675-17688. |
| Cyr, Nicole E., Stuart, Ronald C., Zhu, Xiaorong, Steiner, Donald F., Nillni, Eduardo. A. "Biosynthesis of proTRH-derived peptides in prohormone convertase 1 and 2 knockout mice." Peptides, vol. 35, no. 1, 2012, pp. 42-48. |
| Cabral, Agustina, Valdivia, Spring, Reynaldo, Mirta, Cyr, Nicole E., Nillni, Eduardo A., Perello, Mario. "Short-term cold exposure activates TRH neurons exclusively in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus and raphe pallidus." Neuroscience Letters, vol. 518, no. 2, 2012, pp. 86-91. |
| De Jonghe, B. C., Hayes, M. R., Banno, R., Skibicka, K. P., Zimmer, D. J., Bowen, K. A., Leichner, T. M., Alhadeff, A. L., Kanoski, S. E., Cyr, N. E., Nillni, E. A., Grill, H. J., Bence, K. K. "Deficiency of PTP1B in POMC neurons leads to alterations in energy balance and homeostatic response to cold exposure." AJP: Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 300, no. 6, 2011, pp. E1002-E1011. |
| Bousquet-Moore, Danielle, Prohaska, Joseph R., Nillni, Eduardo A., Czyzyk, Traci, Wetsel, William C., Mains, Richard E., Eipper, Betty A. "Interactions of peptide amidation and copper: Novel biomarkers and mechanisms of neural dysfunction." Neurobiology of disease, vol. 37, no. 1, 2010, pp. 130-140. |
| Cantuti-Castelvetri, Ippolita, Hernandez, Ledia F., Keller-McGandy, Christine E., Kett, Lauren R., Landy, Alex, Hollingsworth, Zane R., Saka, Esen, Crittenden, Jill R., Nillni, Eduardo A., Young, Anne B., Standaert, David G., Graybiel, Ann M. "Levodopa-Induced Dyskinesia Is Associated with Increased Thyrotropin Releasing Hormone in the Dorsal Striatum of Hemi-Parkinsonian Rats." PLoS ONE, vol. 5, no. 11, 2010, pp. e13861. |
| Perello, M., Cakir, I., Cyr, N. E., Romero, A., Stuart, R. C., Chiappini, F., Hollenberg, A. N., Nillni, E. A. "Maintenance of the thyroid axis during diet-induced obesity in rodents is controlled at the central level." AJP: Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 299, no. 6, 2010, pp. E976-E989. |
| Nillni, Eduardo A. "Regulation of the hypothalamic Thyrotropin Releasing Hormone (TRH) neuron by neuronal and peripheral inputs." Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology, vol. 31, no. 2, 2010, pp. 134-156. |
| Ramadori, Giorgio, Fujikawa, Teppei, Fukuda, Makoto, Anderson, Jason, Morgan, Donald A., Mostoslavsky, Raul, Stuart, Ronald C., Perello, Mario, Vianna, Claudia R., Nillni, Eduardo A., Rahmouni, Kamal, Coppari, Roberto. "SIRT1 Deacetylase in POMC Neurons Is Required for Homeostatic Defenses against Diet-Induced Obesity." Cell Metabolism, vol. 12, no. 1, 2010, pp. 78-87. |
| Çakir, Işin, Perello, Mario, Lansari, Omar, Messier, Norma J., Vaslet, Charles A., Nillni, Eduardo A. "Hypothalamic Sirt1 Regulates Food Intake in a Rodent Model System." PLoS ONE, vol. 4, no. 12, 2009, pp. e8322. |
| Bousquet-Moore, D., Ma, X. M., Nillni, E. A., Czyzyk, T. A., Pintar, J. E., Eipper, B. A., Mains, R. E. "Reversal of Physiological Deficits Caused by Diminished Levels of Peptidylglycine α-Amidating Monooxygenase by Dietary Copper." Endocrinology, vol. 150, no. 4, 2009, pp. 1739-1747. |
| Espinosa, V. Paez, Liu, Y., Ferrini, M., Anghel, A., Nie, Y., Tripathi, P.V., Porche, R., Jansen, E., Stuart, R.C., Nillni, E.A., Lutfy, K., Friedman, T.C. "Differential regulation of prohormone convertase 1/3, prohormone convertase 2 and phosphorylated cyclic-AMP-response element binding protein by short-term and long-term morphine treatment: Implications for understanding the “switch” to opiate addiction." Neuroscience, vol. 156, no. 3, 2008, pp. 788-799. |
| Perello, M., Stuart, R., Nillni, E. A. "Prothyrotropin-releasing Hormone Targets Its Processing Products to Different Vesicles of the Secretory Pathway." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 283, no. 29, 2008, pp. 19936-19947. |
| Romero, A., Cakir, I., Vaslet, C. A., Stuart, R. C., Lansari, O., Lucero, H. A., Nillni, E. A. "Role of a Pro-sequence in the Secretory Pathway of Prothyrotropin-releasing Hormone." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 283, no. 46, 2008, pp. 31438-31448. |
| Perello, Mario, Stuart, Ronald C., Vaslet, Charles A., Nillni, Eduardo A. "Cold Exposure Increases the Biosynthesis and Proteolytic Processing of Prothyrotropin-Releasing Hormone in the Hypothalamic Paraventricular Nucleus via β-Adrenoreceptors." Endocrinology, vol. 148, no. 10, 2007, pp. 4952-4964. |
| Enriori, Pablo J., Evans, Anne E., Sinnayah, Puspha, Jobst, Erin E., Tonelli-Lemos, Luciana, Billes, Sonja K., Glavas, Maria M., Grayson, Bernadette E., Perello, Mario, Nillni, Eduardo A., Grove, Kevin L., Cowley, Michael A. "Diet-Induced Obesity Causes Severe but Reversible Leptin Resistance in Arcuate Melanocortin Neurons." Cell Metabolism, vol. 5, no. 3, 2007, pp. 181-194. |
| Perello, M., Stuart, R. C., Nillni, E. A. "Differential effects of fasting and leptin on proopiomelanocortin peptides in the arcuate nucleus and in the nucleus of the solitary tract." AJP: Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 292, no. 5, 2007, pp. E1348-E1357. |
| Mulcahy, Lawrence, R. "Discovery of new peptides from old prohormones: insights for energy balance and beyond." Frontiers in Bioscience, vol. 12, no. 8-12, 2007, pp. 3545. |
| Goldstein J, Perello M, Nillni EA. "PreproThyrotropin-releasing hormone 178-199 affects tyrosine hydroxylase biosynthesis in hypothalamic neurons: a possible role for pituitary prolactin regulation." Journal of molecular neuroscience : MN, vol. 31, no. 1, 2007, pp. 69-82. |
| Goldstein, Jorge, Perello, Mario, Nillni, Eduardo A. "Preprothyrotropin-releasing hormone178–199 affects tyrosine hydroxylase biosynthesis in hypothalamic neurons." Journal of molecular neuroscience : MN, vol. 31, no. 1, 2007, pp. 69-82. |
| Nillni, Eduardo A. "Regulation of Prohormone Convertases in Hypothalamic Neurons: Implications for ProThyrotropin-Releasing Hormone and Proopiomelanocortin." Endocrinology, vol. 148, no. 9, 2007, pp. 4191-4200. |
| Voss-Andreae, Adriana, Murphy, Jonathan G., Ellacott, Kate L. J., Stuart, Ronald C., Nillni, Eduardo A., Cone, Roger D., Fan, Wei. "Role of the Central Melanocortin Circuitry in Adaptive Thermogenesis of Brown Adipose Tissue." Endocrinology, vol. 148, no. 4, 2007, pp. 1550-1560. |
| Perello, Mario. "The biosynthesis and processing of neuropeptides: lessons from prothyrotropin releasing hormone (proTRH)." Frontiers in Bioscience, vol. 12, no. 8-12, 2007, pp. 3554. |
| Espinosa, V. P., Ferrini, M., Shen, X., Lutfy, K., Nillni, E. A., Friedman, T. C. "Cellular colocalization and coregulation between hypothalamic pro-TRH and prohormone convertases in hypothyroidism." AJP: Endocrinology and Metabolism, vol. 292, no. 1, 2006, pp. E175-E186. |
| Mulcahy, Lawrence R., Barker, Alison J., Nillni, Eduardo A. "Disruption of disulfide bond formation alters the trafficking of prothyrotropin releasing hormone (proTRH)-derived peptides." Regulatory Peptides, vol. 133, no. 1-3, 2006, pp. 123-133. |
| Perello, Mario, Stuart, Ronald C., Nillni, Eduardo A. "The Role of Intracerebroventricular Administration of Leptin in the Stimulation of Prothyrotropin Releasing Hormone Neurons in the Hypothalamic Paraventricular Nucleus." Endocrinology, vol. 147, no. 7, 2006, pp. 3296-3306. |
| Perello, Mario, Friedman, Theodore, Paez-Espinosa, Veronica, Shen, Xiaoxiong, Stuart, Ronald C., Nillni, Eduardo A. "Thyroid Hormones Selectively Regulate the Posttranslational Processing of Prothyrotropin-Releasing Hormone in the Paraventricular Nucleus of the Hypothalamus." Endocrinology, vol. 147, no. 6, 2006, pp. 2705-2716. |
| Mulcahy, L. R. "Prohormone-Convertase 1 Processing Enhances Post-Golgi Sorting of Prothyrotropin-releasing Hormone-derived Peptides." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 280, no. 48, 2005, pp. 39818-39826. |
| Jing, Enxuan, Nillni, Eduardo A., Sanchez, Vanesa C., Stuart, Ronald C., Good, Deborah J. "Deletion of the Nhlh2 Transcription Factor Decreases the Levels of the Anorexigenic Peptides α Melanocyte-Stimulating Hormone and Thyrotropin-Releasing Hormone and Implicates Prohormone Convertases I and II in Obesity." Endocrinology, vol. 145, no. 4, 2004, pp. 1503-1513. |
| Guo, L., Munzberg, H., Stuart, R. C., Nillni, E. A., Bjorbaek, C. "N-acetylation of hypothalamic -melanocyte-stimulating hormone and regulation by leptin." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 101, no. 32, 2004, pp. 11797-11802. |
| Sanchez, Vanesa C., Goldstein, Jorge, Stuart, Ronald C., Hovanesian, Virginia, Huo, Lihong, Munzberg, Heike, Friedman, Theodore C., Bjorbaek, Christian, Nillni, Eduardo A. "Regulation of hypothalamic prohormone convertases 1 and 2 and effects on processing of prothyrotropin-releasing hormone." Journal of Clinical Investigation, vol. 114, no. 3, 2004, pp. 357-369. |
| Sanchez, Vanesa C., Goldstein, Jorge, Stuart, Ronald C., Hovanesian, Virginia, Huo, Lihong, Munzberg, Heike, Friedman, Theodore C., Bjorbaek, Christian, Nillni, Eduardo A. "Regulation of hypothalamic prohormone convertases 1 and 2 and effects on processing of prothyrotropin-releasing hormone." Journal of Clinical Investigation, vol. 114, no. 3, 2004, pp. 357-369. |
| Huo, Lihong, Münzberg, Heike, Nillni, Eduardo A., Bjørbæk, Christian. "Role of Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 in Regulation of Hypothalamic trh Gene Expression by Leptin." Endocrinology, vol. 145, no. 5, 2004, pp. 2516-2523. |
| Posner, Samuel F., Vaslet, Charles A., Jurofcik, Michelle, Lee, Alisson, Seidah, Nabil G., Nillni, Eduardo A. "Stepwise Posttranslational Processing of Progrowth Hormone-Releasing Hormone (proGHRH) Polypeptide by Furin and PC1." ENDO, vol. 23, no. 2-3, 2004, pp. 199-214. |
| Posner SF, Vaslet CA, Jurofcik M, Lee A, Seidah NG, Nillni EA. "Stepwise posttranslational processing of progrowth hormone-releasing hormone (proGHRH) polypeptide by furin and PC1." Endocrine, vol. 23, no. 2-3, 2004, pp. 199-213. |
| Münzberg H, Huo L, Nillni EA, Hollenberg AN, Bjørbaek C. "Role of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 in regulation of hypothalamic proopiomelanocortin gene expression by leptin." Endocrinology, vol. 144, no. 5, 2003, pp. 2121-31. |
| Cowley MA, Smith RG, Diano S, Tschöp M, Pronchuk N, Grove KL, Strasburger CJ, Bidlingmaier M, Esterman M, Heiman ML, Garcia-Segura LM, Nillni EA, Mendez P, Low MJ, Sotonyi P, Friedman JM, Liu H, Pinto S, Colmers WF, Cone RD, Horvath TL. "The distribution and mechanism of action of ghrelin in the CNS demonstrates a novel hypothalamic circuit regulating energy homeostasis." Neuron, vol. 37, no. 4, 2003, pp. 649-61. |
| Nillni EA, Xie W, Mulcahy L, Sanchez VC, Wetsel WC. "Deficiencies in pro-thyrotropin-releasing hormone processing and abnormalities in thermoregulation in Cpefat/fat mice." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 277, no. 50, 2002, pp. 48587-95. |
| Nillni EA, Lee A, Legradi G, Lechan RM. "Effect of precipitated morphine withdrawal on post-translational processing of prothyrotropin releasing hormone (proTRH) in the ventrolateral column of the midbrain periaqueductal gray." Journal of neurochemistry, vol. 80, no. 5, 2002, pp. 874-84. |
| Nillni EA, Aird F, Seidah NG, Todd RB, Koenig JI. "PreproTRH(178-199) and two novel peptides (pFQ7 and pSE14) derived from its processing, which are produced in the paraventricular nucleus of the rat hypothalamus, are regulated during suckling." Endocrinology, vol. 142, no. 2, 2001, pp. 896-906. |
| Harris M, Aschkenasi C, Elias CF, Chandrankunnel A, Nillni EA, Bjøorbaek C, Elmquist JK, Flier JS, Hollenberg AN. "Transcriptional regulation of the thyrotropin-releasing hormone gene by leptin and melanocortin signaling." Journal of Clinical Investigation, vol. 107, no. 1, 2001, pp. 111-20. |
| Nillni EA, Vaslet C, Harris M, Hollenberg A, Bjørbak C, Flier JS. "Leptin regulates prothyrotropin-releasing hormone biosynthesis. Evidence for direct and indirect pathways." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 275, no. 46, 2000, pp. 36124-33. |
| Nillni EA. "Neuroregulation of ProTRH biosynthesis and processing." Endocrine, vol. 10, no. 3, 1999, pp. 185-99. |
| Nillni EA, Steinmetz R, Pescovitz OH. "Posttranslational processing of progrowth hormone-releasing hormone." Endocrinology, vol. 140, no. 12, 1999, pp. 5817-27. |
| Nillni EA, Sevarino KA. "The biology of pro-thyrotropin-releasing hormone-derived peptides." Endocrine reviews, vol. 20, no. 5, 1999, pp. 599-648. |
| Bruhn TO, Huang SS, Vaslet C, Nillni EA. "Glucocorticoids modulate the biosynthesis and processing of prothyrotropin releasing-hormone (proTRH)." Endocrine, vol. 9, no. 2, 1998, pp. 143-52. |
| Schaner P, Todd RB, Seidah NG, Nillni EA. "Processing of prothyrotropin-releasing hormone by the family of prohormone convertases." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 272, no. 32, 1997, pp. 19958-68. |
| Nillni EA, Luo LG, Jackson IM, McMillan P. "Identification of the thyrotropin-releasing hormone precursor, its processing products, and its coexpression with convertase 1 in primary cultures of hypothalamic neurons: anatomic distribution of PC1 and PC2." Endocrinology, vol. 137, no. 12, 1996, pp. 5651-61. |
| Cruz IP, Nillni EA. "Intracellular sites of prothyrotropin-releasing hormone processing." Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 271, no. 37, 1996, pp. 22736-45. |
| Légrádi G, Rand WM, Hitz S, Nillni EA, Jackson IM, Lechan RM. "Opiate withdrawal increases ProTRH gene expression in the ventrolateral column of the midbrain periaqueductal gray." Brain Research, vol. 729, no. 1, 1996, pp. 10-19. |
| Nillni EA, Friedman TC, Todd RB, Birch NP, Loh YP, Jackson IM. "Pro-thyrotropin-releasing hormone processing by recombinant PC1." Journal of neurochemistry, vol. 65, no. 6, 1995, pp. 2462-72. |
| Friedman TC, Loh YP, Cawley NX, Birch NP, Huang SS, Jackson IM, Nillni EA. "Processing of prothyrotropin-releasing hormone (Pro-TRH) by bovine intermediate lobe secretory vesicle membrane PC1 and PC2 enzymes." Endocrinology, vol. 136, no. 10, 1995, pp. 4462-72. |
| Nillni EA, Sevarino KA, Jackson IM. "Identification of the thyrotropin-releasing hormone-prohormone and its posttranslational processing in a transfected AtT20 tumoral cell line." Endocrinology, vol. 132, no. 3, 1993, pp. 1260-70. |
| Nillni EA, Sevarino KA, Jackson IM. "Processing of proTRH to its intermediate products occurs before the packing into secretory granules of transfected AtT20 cells." Endocrinology, vol. 132, no. 3, 1993, pp. 1271-7. |
| Mikkelsen RB, Wallach DF, Van Doren E, Nillni EA. "Membrane potential of erythrocytic stages of Plasmodium chabaudi free of the host cell membrane." Molecular and biochemical parasitology, vol. 21, no. 1, 1986, pp. 83-92. |
| Nillni EA, Schmidt-Ullrich R, Mikkelsen RB, Wallach DF. "Extracellular development of Plasmodium knowlesi erythrocytic stages in an artificial intracellular medium." Molecular and biochemical parasitology, vol. 17, no. 2, 1985, pp. 219-37. |
| Nillni EA, Spira DT. "Characterization of Plasmodium berghei antigens inducing blast transformation in immune rat lymphocytes." Zeitschrift fur Parasitenkunde (Berlin, Germany), vol. 68, no. 3, 1982, pp. 239-47. |
| Nillni EA, Londner MV, Spira DT. "A simple method for separation of uninfected erythrocytes from those infected with Plasmodium berghei and for isolation of artificially released parasites." Zeitschrift fur Parasitenkunde (Berlin, Germany), vol. 64, no. 3, 1981, pp. 279-84. |
Nutrition is a fundamental mechanism for survival and eating is one of the greatest human pleasures, but it can also be disturbed leading to under-nutrition, over-nutrition, and eating disorders. In modern human society excess eating for unconscious susceptible individuals is leading to a growing obesity epidemic in the United States and other developed countries. Obesity or overweight state is the most costly nutritional disorder of the 21st century affecting 2.1 or more billion individuals worldwide. There are more obese and overweight people on the planet than people suffering from malnutrition. Recent data suggest that the prevalence of obesity in the United States is 35% for men and 40% for women. According to the Center for Disease Control, by 2030, medical costs associated with treating preventable obesity-related diseases are estimated to increase from $48 billion to $66 billion per year in the United States, and the loss in economic productivity could be between $390 billion and $580 billion annually by 2030. There have been many interventions developed to treat obesity, including dietary changes, increased activity and exercise, behavior modification, prescription weight-loss medication, and weight-loss surgery; however, most have failed. Specifically, most diets offered by different outlets have 75-95% failure after 1 or 2 years of intervention. Therefore, despite all of these tremendous efforts, obesity not only remains an unsolved problem, but obesity continues to rise.
The survival of all species depends on their ability to acquire energy for its daily use and storage. From an evolutionary standpoint, feeding or intake of calories from meal to meal is necessary to: a) satisfy nutritional and metabolic requirements, and b) prepare for periods of food shortage during seasonal changes. Energy balance is the relationship that exists between energy intake (i.e., calories taken from food and drink) and energy expenditure (i.e., calories used for our daily energy requirements). Hence, the maintenance of this balance is achieved by the integration of a) environmental signals (i.e., environmental cues steer individuals decisions concerning food intake and food choice); b) physiological and metabolic signals (i.e., hormones, nutrient sensors, and critical organs); c) genetic makeup (i.e., multiple genetic interactions); and d) social and hedonic influences (i.e., the drive to eat to obtain pleasure without an energy deficit). When this balance is disrupted, we witness either a weight gain or a weight loss. In the case of weight gain, energy imbalance is caused by a higher calorie intake versus the number of calories burned. Therefore, we can define obesity as a Disorder of Energy Balance. This longstanding imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure is influenced by a very complex set of biological pathway systems regulating appetite. In summary, obesity results from multiple genetic and environmental factors that likely interact with each other. Specifically, genes operate additively and through gene-gene interactions to influence body weight. A longstanding obesity state will eventually cause type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, mood disorders, heart disease, liver disease, hypertension, reproductive disorders and cancer risk. The aim of this textbook, Energy Balance, Neuropeptide Hormones, and Neuroendocrine Function, is to provide a comprehensive description and discussion of the latest knowledge in peptide hormones and their action on energy balance, as well as a cutting-edge analysis by leading experts in the field. Peptide hormones play a central role in many physiological and metabolic processes acting in concert with other molecules to regulate an array of molecular mechanisms. Research from the last 30 years has shown the importance of peptide hormones in fields such as neuroscience, immunology, pharmacology, cell biology, and energy metabolism.
Textbook of Energy Balance, Neuropeptide Hormones, and Neuroendocrine Function. Eduardo A. Nillni, Editor. 2018,
ISBN 978-3-319-89506-2. Springer Publishing.
Hypothalamic ER-associated degradation regulates POMC maturation, feeding and age-associated obesity. Geun Hyang Kim, Guojun Shi, Diane Somlo, Leena Haataja, Soobin Song, Qiaoming Long, Eduardo A. Nillni, Malcolm J. Low, Peter Arvan, Martin G. Myers, Jr, and Ling Qi. 2018. In press. Jouurnal of Clinical Investigation.
The metabolic sensor Sirt1 and the hypothalamus: Interplay between peptide hormones and pro-hormone convertases. Nillni EA. Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2016 Dec 15;438:77-88. doi: 10.1016/j.mce.2016.09.002. Epub 2016 Sep 8. Review.
The Nutrient and Energy Sensor Sirt1 Regulates the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) Axis by Altering the Production of the Prohormone Convertase 2 (PC2) Essential in the Maturation of Corticotropin-releasing Hormone (CRH) from Its Prohormone in Male Rats. Toorie AM, Cyr NE, Steger JS, Beckman R, Farah G, Nillni EA. J Biol Chem. 2016 Mar 11;291(11):5844-59. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M115.675264. Epub 2016 Jan 11.
Reduced melanocortin production causes sexual dysfunction in male mice with POMC neuronal insulin and leptin insensitivity Faulkner LD, Dowling AR, Stuart RC, Nillni EA, Hill JW. Endocrinology. 2015 Apr;156(4):1372-85. doi: 10.1210/en.2014-1788. Epub 2015 Jan 15.
Central Sirt1 regulates body weight and energy expenditure along with the POMC-derived peptide α-MSH and the processing enzyme CPE production in diet-induced obese male rats. Cyr NE, Steger JS, Toorie AM, Yang JZ, Stuart R, Nillni EA. Endocrinology. 2015 Mar;156(3):961-74. doi: 10.1210/en.2014-1970. Epub 2014 Dec 30.
| Year | Degree | Institution |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | PhD | Hebrew University |
| 1976 | MSc | University of Buenos Aires |
REVIEWER FOR THE FOLLOWING SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS
2004 - 2017 Member of the Editorial Board of Endocrinology
2013 - 2016 Member of the Editorial Board of Molecular Metabolism
1998 - present Ad hoc reviewer for the Journal of Neurochemistry
1999 - present Ad hoc reviewer for the Journal of Biological chemistry
2012 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Regulatory Peptides
2005 - present Ad hoc reviewer for the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
2006 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Molecular and cellular Endocrinology
2006 - present Ad hoc reviewer for the Journal of Molecular Neuroscience
2007 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Brain Research
2009 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Journal of Clinical Investigation
2011 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Nature
2010 - present Ad hoc reviewer for American Journal of Physiology
2011 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Endocrine Reviews
2011 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
2010 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Annals of Medicine
2012 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Physiological Behavior
2012 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Cell Metabolism
2012 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Thyroid
2014 - present Ad hoc reviewer for Cell and Cell Reports
MEMBERSHIP IN SOCIETIES
1984 - 1994 American Chemical Society
1977 - 1986 Society of Protozoologists
1993 - present The Endocrine Society
1984 - 2007 The American Society for Cell Biology
1995 - present The American Society for the Advance of Science
1984 - present FASEB
1987 - 1989 Society of Complex Carbohydrates
1996 2003 American Neuroendocrine Society
2009 - 2011 American Thyroid Asociation
