Rate My Professor Leico Elias

Lucila Leico Kagohara Elias is an Associate Professor in the Department of Physiology at the Ribeirão Preto Medical School (FMRP), University of São Paulo (USP). She received her MD degree from FMRP-USP in 1984, a master's degree in Medicine in 1991, and a PhD in Medicine in 1995, all from FMRP-USP. Throughout her career at FMRP-USP, she has focused on teaching and research in physiology, contributing to the Graduate Program in Physiology where she leads the research line on Regulation of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis and Neuroendocrine Regulation of Food Intake.

Her research centers on neuroendocrinology, examining the neuroendocrine control of food intake, energy homeostasis, body fluid metabolism, and the HPA axis. Key areas include hypothalamic signaling by leptin, PI3K pathways in the ventromedial hypothalamus, roles of AgRP and POMC neurons, melanocortin systems, and effects in models of obesity, insulin resistance, and neonatal nutritional programming. She has directed FAPESP-funded projects such as the thematic project 'Homeostase hidroeletrolítica e energética: do metabolismo celular aos sistemas endócrinos em diferentes fases do desenvolvimento,' along with auxiliary projects, international collaborations, and student fellowships on topics like CRISPR-Cas9 mouse models, STAT3 in SF1 neurons, and mesolimbic system participation in feeding control. Representative publications include 'Neuroendocrine control of body fluid metabolism' (2004), 'Effects of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) on water intake and renal excretion of sodium in water-deprived conscious rats' (2015), 'Growth hormone regulates neuroendocrine responses to independent feeding and fasting in male mice' (2019), 'STAT3 but Not ERK2 Is a Crucial Mediator Against Diet-Induced Obesity in the Ventromedial Hypothalamus' (2021), and 'PI3K in the VMH Attenuates Diet-Induced Obesity and Improves Glucose Homeostasis' (de Jesus et al., 2025). Elias has held CNPq Productivity in Research fellowships (PQ) in 2007 and 2014 and delivered lectures including on glucocorticoids and COVID-19 at USP in 2020.