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Understanding food selection in light of protein-specific appetite
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International audience. Protein is an essential macronutrient and its consumption is tightly regulated. Lowering protein content in the diet results in overeating through the phenomenon of protein leverage, which has been demonstrated in insects, rodents and primates, including several studies in humans, while increasing preference for protein-rich foods. But how protein appetite shapes our day-to-day food choices? On-going human and rodent studies in our team aim at characterising the protein appetite and its mechanisms. In an observations study on 86 human volunteers, we observed that mean daily protein consumption was positively associated with protein valuation, that is, the tendency to prefer foods that are rich in protein. Interestingly, while consumption of animal protein, especially meat, was positively associated with protein valuation, consumption of plant protein, especially foods alternative to animal proteins, was negatively associated with protein valuation. Therefore, selection of protein sources might be driven by specific appetite for protein, although causality remains to be demonstrated. We also studied appetite for protein on the rat model. Compared to normo- protein-fed rats (NP), low-protein-fed rats (LP) ate significantly more daily calories and gained more weight and fat mass. LP rats also demonstrated increased appetite for protein, selecting HP pellets preferentially to LP or NP pellets. This drive for HP-protein foods was associated with higher activation of both reward- and satiety-related brain regions. However, for NP rats, this preference was less universal, some animals demonstrating a marked preference for HP pellets, while others having no significant preference. Therefore, it seems that while protein-specific appetite is salient when an individual is put on low-protein diet, it still plays a role in food selection even when following a normo-protein diet – in which case, this appetite can vary among individuals. It remains to be understood by which mechanisms this appetite shapes food selection and what determines its inter-individual variability.
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