ArticleMolecular metabolism2018
FGF21, a liver hormone that inhibits alcohol intake in mice, increases in human circulation after acute alcohol ingestion and sustained binge drinking at Oktoberfest.
Article in Molecular metabolism, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 61 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
61 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 89 citations in OpenAlex.
- Close association between lifestyle and circulating FGF21 levels: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2022Pooled it
- Trial
- LLF580, an FGF21 Analog, Reduces Triglycerides and Hepatic Fat in Obese Adults With Modest Hypertriglyceridemia.The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism · 2022Trial
- Trial
- AKR-001, an Fc-FGF21 Analog, Showed Sustained Pharmacodynamic Effects on Insulin Sensitivity and Lipid Metabolism in Type 2 Diabetes Patients.Cell reports. Medicine · 2020Trial
- Protein Decoys, Alcohol, and Energy Intake: Testing a Mechanistic-Ecological Model.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2026Review
- A loss-of-function variant in GFRAL associates with increased alcohol consumption in humans.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Negative feedback regulation of alcohol ingestion through the FGF21-PVH oxytocin-VTA dopamine system.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2026Article
- Salient cue reactivity and eating behaviors in ex-smokers, abstinent alcohol use disorder, and obesity.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Changes in fibroblast growth factor 21 levels associated with alcohol consumption and smoking cessation.Endocrine connections · 2026Article
- FGF21 analogue PF-05231023 on alcohol consumption and neuronal activity in the nucleus accumbens.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026Article
- Pharmacotherapy to Prevent Alcohol Relapse in Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease.Current gastroenterology reports · 2025Review
- Identification of a common ketohexokinase-dependent link driving alcohol intake and alcohol-associated liver disease in mice.Nature metabolism · 2025Article
- Decision-Making Scores and Hunger Susceptibility: A Positive Correlation Mediated by Fasting FGF21 Independently of Body Fat.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Secreted proteins in treating metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease: from bench towards bedside.Protein & cell · 2025Review
- Ethanol induction of FGF21 in the liver is dependent on histone acetylation and ligand activation of ChREBP by glycerol-3-phosphate.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Distinct Fgf21 Expression Patterns in Various Tissues in Response to Different Dietary Regimens Using a Reporter Mouse Model.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Glucagon-like peptide-1, fibroblast growth factor 21, and other endocrine responses to alcohol ingestion in women before and after metabolic surgery.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Article
- Research progress on the role of FGF21 in insulin resistance.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2025Review
- Distinct genetic signals at the FGF21 locus complicate studies of FGF21's role in diet regulation using human cohort data.Molecular metabolism · 2024Article
1 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
13 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveExcessive alcohol consumption is a leading cause of global morbidity and mortality. However, knowledge of the biological factors that influence ad libitum alcohol intake may be incomplete. Two large studies recently linked variants in the KLB locus with levels of alcohol intake in humans. KLB encodes β-klotho, co-receptor for the liver-derived hormone fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21). In mice, FGF21 reduces alcohol intake, and human Fgf21 variants are enriched among heavy drinkers. Thus, the liver may limit alcohol consumption by secreting FGF21. However, whether full-length, active plasma FGF21 (FGF21 (1-181)) levels in humans increase acutely or sub-chronically in response to alcohol ingestion is uncertain.
methodsWe recruited 10 healthy, fasted male subjects to receive an oral water or alcohol bolus with concurrent blood sampling for FGF21 (1-181) measurement in plasma. In addition, we measured circulating FGF21 (1-181) levels, liver stiffness, triglyceride, and other metabolic parameters in three healthy Danish men before and after consuming an average of 22.6 beers/person/day (4.4 g/kg/day of ethanol) for three days during Oktoberfest 2017 in Munich, Germany. We further correlated fasting FGF21 (1-181) levels in 49 healthy, non-alcoholic subjects of mixed sex with self-reports of alcohol-related behaviors, emotional responses, and problems. Finally, we characterized the effect of recombinant human FGF21 injection on ad libitum alcohol intake in mice.
resultsWe show that alcohol ingestion (25.3 g or ∼2.5 standard drinks) acutely increases plasma levels of FGF21 (1-181) 3.4-fold in fasting humans. We also find that binge drinking for three days at Oktoberfest is associated with a 2.1-fold increase in baseline FGF21 (1-181) levels, in contrast to minor deteriorations in metabolic and hepatic biomarkers. However, basal FGF21 (1-181) levels were not correlated with differences in alcohol-related behaviors, emotional responses, or problems in our non-alcoholic subjects. Finally, we show that once-daily injection of recombinant human FGF21 reduces ad libitum alcohol intake by 21% in mice.
conclusionsFGF21 (1-181) is markedly increased in circulation by both acute and sub-chronic alcohol intake in humans, and reduces alcohol intake in mice. These observations are consistent with a role for FGF21 as an endocrine inhibitor of alcohol appetite in humans.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.