ARTICLE Mouse hypothalamic GT1-7 cells demonstrate AMPK-dependent intrinsic glucose-sensing behaviour

Aims/hypothesis Hypothalamic glucose-excited (GE) neu-rons contribute to whole-body glucose homeostasis and participate in the detection of hypoglycaemia. This system appears defective in type 1 diabetes, in which hypoglycae-mia commonly occurs. Unfortunately, it is at present unclear which molecular components required for glucose sensing are produced in individual neurons and how these are func-tionally linked. We used the GT1-7 mouse hypothalamic cell line to address these issues. Methods Electrophysiological recordings, coupled with measurements of gene expression and protein levels and activity, were made from unmodified GT1-7 cells and cells in which AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) catalytic subunit gene expression and activity were reduced