Regulator of G protein signaling 9-2 (RGS9-2) is a protein that is highly enriched in the striatum, a brain region that mediates motivation, movement and reward responses. We have recently implicated RGS9-2 as a factor in regulating body weight in humans, rats and mice. For example, we showed that RGS9 gene knockout mice are heavier than their wild-type littermates, had significantly higher percentages of abdominal fat and that their constituent adipocytes had a mean cross-sectional area that was more than double that of corresponding cells from wild-type mice. Hence, we will study the cellular functions of RGS9-2 to better understand how the brain controls body weight and obesity.

*This project involves the use of animals.