Reduced food intake following intracerebroventricular administration of a low molecular weight fraction of plasma from free-feeding fowl

Plasma was collected from free-feeding Leghorn cockerels and partitioned by gel filtration into fractions of different molecular weight ranges. The individual fractions were then lyophilized and reconstituted to four times the original concentration. The plasma was administered to 10-week-old Leghorn cockerels via a stainless steel guide cannula, stereotaxically implanted into the lateral cerebral ventricle. Sated cockerels received 10 microliters intracerebroventricular (ICV) injections of one of the concentrated plasma fractions or of a control injection of artificial cerebrospinal fluid. Food and water intake were monitored following injection. Food intake was significantly decreased by the ICV injection of plasma fractions less than 1500 mol wt, whereas water consumption was not significantly different from that of the controls. The 1500 to 5000 mol wt fraction and the fraction above 5000 did not alter either food or water intake. These results suggest that the plasma of free-feeding domestic fowl contains a low molecular weight factor that is involved in the regulation of food intake.