Brain control of appetite during sickness

Given the high-energy requirements to sustain immune responses and healing processes, it is intriguing that lack of appetite (i.e. anorexia) is a cardinal feature of sickness behaviour. While our understanding of the brain mechanisms that control appetite is rapidly growing, how inflammation impacts on these mechanisms is not fully understood. Here, we discuss advances in our understanding of discrete appetite controlling mechanisms and how inflammation influences their function. We further discuss the pathophysiological significance of anorexia and negative energy balance during the immune regulatory response.