The document describes a virtual reality defense game being developed to teach students about neuroscience concepts related to hunger and weight control. In the game, students attempt to regulate hormones and neurotransmitters that impact hunger pathways in the brain of a simulated patient. Playing the game helps students understand how different hormones, neuropeptides, and brain regions interact in systems that control eating behavior and body weight. An evaluation study will compare the educational impact of the VR version to a 2D version in improving neuroanatomical knowledge, interest in learning more, and attitudes about the scientific basis of obesity. The goal is for students to gain a 3D conceptual understanding of the complex biological factors involved in weight regulation.

1. Approach: In the entertainment-quality VR defense game, the
student attempts to ameliorate the effects of orexigenic (hunger
promoting) hormones, such as ghrelin, and neurotransmitters, such
as AGRP/NPY as they impact cortico-limbic systems and eventually
the hunger and body weight of the simulated patient.
The student's task in the VR defense game is to capture an
onslaught of elements, inspect them, and decide how best to
respond to the stimulus. For example, they can stop, deflect, or
destroy ghrelin or leptin. They can see the potential impact on
POMC/CART anorexigenic signaling of MC 3 and 4 receptors.
The game teaches both the brain-based process by which ghrelin,
other messengers, and secondary neurotransmitters impact eating
behaviors. The game assists with understanding the effects of a
variety of hormones and neuropeptides in the hypothalamus and
elsewhere in the brain as they affect satiety and hunger as well as
the mesolimbic dopamine reward pathway. Students develop a
conceptual understanding of how the system works via a 3D
simulated environment. By playing the game, the student learns the
various components involved in the regulation of eating behavior
and body weight.
Potential Impact: Students who complete the game can overlay actual 3D
elements onto the conceptual framework and place neuroanatomic structures
and neurophysiology within that conceptual framework to extend and cement
understanding of factors that affect weight control. Further expansion of the
game will provide a more scientific understanding of how some medications
mediate hunger and others lead to weight gain. Understanding this complex
system at a neuroscience level, versus the non-scientific assertions often
reported, may help students challenge vague claims and demand explanations
based on neuroscience.
Teaching Neuroscience Concepts Related to Hunger
via a VR Defense Game
Mary Metcalf, PhD, Bradley Tanner, MD, Brian Tanner, Clinical Tools, Inc., Chapel Hill, NC
Acknowledgments & Disclosure
Future Directions: A planned study compares an immersive Oculus 3D
experience with a more typical 2D version of the same content to assess
impact on: neuroanatomical knowledge, confidence in the ability to acquire
more knowledge, and interest in learning more about the biological cause of
obesity. We will also measure attitudes related to: the scientific basis of
obesity. Process outcomes include measures of realism, simulation sickness
side effects, and satisfaction.
Novel findings in neuroscience provide an ongoing opportunity to expand the
conceptual understanding of brain functioning. Future work, conceptualized as
higher levels of the game, can improve comprehension of impulsivity,
addiction, and other behaviors.
Short Description: With NIH/NIDDK funding (SBIR
Grant #1 R44 DK108608-01, Serious Game-based
Development of Obesity Intervention Skills), we are
creating educational tools to enhance student
understanding of obesity and the CNS structures and
communication involved in weight control.
Suggested Citation & Communication
Public Health Relevance: The consequences of
obesity are broad and severe: Two-thirds (66%) of U.S.
adults are considered at least overweight (BMI ≥ 25
kg/m2
), while one-third of adults are categorized as obese
(BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2
)
Metcalf M, Tanner B, Tanner B. Teaching Neuroscience Concepts Related to
Hunger via a VR Defense Game. Poster presented at the 2018 Winter Conference
on Brain Research Meeting January 16, 2018, Whistler, BC, Canada.
Contact Author: metcalf@clinicaltools.com
The research was funded entirely by the NIDDK/NIH (award #SBIR Grant #1 R44 DK108608-01, Serious
Game-based Development of Obesity Intervention Skills, Mary Metcalf and Bradley Tanner, Co-PI). The
Clinical Tools, Inc. IRB reviewed and approved the research.
Clinical Tools, Inc is 100% owned by Bradley Tanner, MD and he serves as President of Clinical Tools, Inc.
Initial Results: In the first phase of the project, we created a 2D game
based on a 2D defense 3rd
person model and focusing on factors associated with
Ghrelin. The detachment of a 3rd
person and the 2D nature was difficult to
overlay on the neurological processes involved. We instead redirected the game
toward a first-person VR experience that involved more direct interaction with
factors related to obesity.
References
1) Berthoud Hans-Rudolf, Münzberg Heike, Morrison Christopher D. Blaming the Brain for Obesity: Integration of
Hedonic and Homeostatic Mechanisms. Gastroenterology. May 1, 2017;152(7):1728-1738.
doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2016.12.050.
2) Dietrich Marcelo, Horvath Tamas. Dietrich, MO and Horvath, TL. Limitations in Anti-Obesity Drug Development: The
Critical Role of Hunger-Promoting Neurons. Nat Rev Drug Discov 11: 675-691. Vol 11. August 3, 2012.
doi:10.1038/nrd3739.
3) Roth Christian. Hypothalamic Obesity in Patients with Craniopharyngioma: Profound Changes of Several Weight
Regulatory Circuits. Front Endocrinol. 2011;2. doi:10.3389/fendo.2011.00049.
Problem: Hormones and neuropeptides associated with
weight regulation belie a complex medical problem with
strong scientific evidence. Treatment strategies should be
based on a thorough understanding of the biological
mechanisms.
Existing neuroscience training is often didactic. Students
struggle to obtain an internal 3D map of neuroscience
structures and connect neurophysiology to those
structures. With support from NIDDK, our project
capitalizes on the popularity of video games and
investigates the potential of teaching students
neuroscience, not by pictures, diagrams, and explanations,
but via a VR defense game conveying neuroscience
concepts related to hunger and weight control.