CBM Research Seminar – Neural Mechanisms of Feeding Regulation

The College of Biomedicine (CBM) was pleased to host Professor Yu FU from the A*STAR Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (A*STAR IMCB) as a distinguished speaker for the CBM Research Seminar on 6 August 2026. Professor Fu is a Senior Principal Investigator and Division Director at A*STAR IMCB in Singapore. He has been honoured with numerous accolades, including A*STAR Fellow, National Research Foundation Investigator, EMBO Global Investigator, and A*STAR Investigator.

During the seminar, Professor Fu shared his team's latest discoveries on the central neural circuits that govern feeding behaviour and body weight regulation.

In his talk entitled "Neural Mechanisms of Feeding Regulation", Professor Fu addressed a fundamental question in neuroscience: how different types of hypothalamic orexigenic neurons regulate distinct aspects of eating. Using innovative behavioural paradigms, his team revealed that these neuronal populations drive qualitatively different forms of eating behaviour, moving beyond a simple model of unified appetite control.

Furthermore, Professor Fu demonstrated how whole-brain neural circuit mapping techniques have uncovered a top-down regulatory pathway, showing that neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) modulate hypothalamic activity. He indicated that these cortical-hypothalamic neural circuits are also relevant to human body weight regulation, offering valuable insights into both central and peripheral neural regulation of energy balance.

The seminar stimulated active discussion among faculty members, researchers, and students from diverse disciplines. Professor Fu's presentation underscored the functional specification of hypothalamic orexigenic neurons and advanced the academic community's understanding of central neural circuits involved in metabolic and feeding control.