Role of hindbrain melanocortin-4 receptor activity in controlling cardiovascular and metabolic functions in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Background Although we previously demonstrated that activation of central nervous system (CNS) melanocortin3/4 receptors (MC3/4R) play a key role in blood pressure (BP) regulation, especially in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs), the importance of hindbrain MC4R is still unclear.