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Li W, Chen X, Luo Y, Xiao M, Liu Y, Chen H. Altered connectivity patterns of medial and lateral orbitofrontal cortex underlie the severity of bulimic symptoms. Int J Clin Health Psychol 2024; 24:100439. [PMID: 38226007 PMCID: PMC10788814 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijchp.2024.100439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 01/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Objective Compared to clinical bulimia nervosa, sub-threshold bulimic symptoms are becoming more prevalent in non-clinical or general population, which is repeatedly linked with the connectivity in orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), including functionally heterogeneous the medial and lateral OFC (mOFC; lOFC). However, the specific connectivity patterns of the mOFC and lOFC in individuals with severe or mild bulimic symptoms (SB; MB) remain poorly understood. Methods We first utilized resting-state functional connectivity (FC) and spectral dynamic causal modeling (spDCM) to investigate abnormal functional and effective connectivity (EC) of OFC subregions in adults with different severity of bulimic. The SB group (n = 21), MB group (n = 114), and healthy controls (HC, n = 91) underwent rs-fMRI scans. A generalized linear model was applied to determine the OFC-seeded whole-brain FC across the three groups. Subsequently, spDCM was used to estimate differences in EC among the three groups based on the FC results. Results We observed a shared neural basis for SB and MB groups (i.e., weaker lOFC-superior parietal lobule connectivity), which may support the role of dysfunctional inhibitory control in general bulimic symptomatology. Whereas, SB group displayed greater lOFC-occipital pole connectivity than MB group, suggesting the specificity of the neural correlates of full-threshold/severe bulimia. The directional links from the mOFC to lOFC and amygdala could further explain the aberrant interactions of reward sensitivity with inhibitory control and homeostatic energy in sub-threshold/mild condition. Conclusion The current study provides novel evidence that divergent connectivity patterns of the lOFC and mOFC may contribute to different severities of bulimia, which will expands our understanding of the neurobiological substrates underlying bulimia across a spectrum from healthy to unhealthy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Li
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Ximei Chen
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Yijun Luo
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Mingyue Xiao
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Yong Liu
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Hong Chen
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
- Research Center of Psychology and Social Development, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
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Zhang X, Wen K, Han J, Chen H. The Neural Processes in Food Decision-making and their Effect on Daily Diet Management in Successful and Unsuccessful Restrained Eaters. Neuroscience 2023; 517:1-17. [PMID: 36764599 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.01.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2022] [Revised: 01/08/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023]
Abstract
This study aimed to explore the neural mechanisms underlying food decision making in unsuccessful restrained eaters (US-REs) and successful restrained eaters (S-REs). During a functional magnetic resonance imaging scan, participants were required to choose between pairs of high- and low-calorie foods under the following conditions: the congruent condition (choose between high- and low-calorie foods with the same level of tastiness) and incongruent condition (choose between high-calorie foods tastier than the corresponding low-calorie foods). Subsequently, the participants' diets were monitored for one week. The behavioral results showed that US-REs (n = 28) chose more high-calorie foods than S-REs (n = 26); in contrast, S-REs spent more time in choosing for the incongruent than the congruent condition. The fMRI results found that US-REs exhibited more activity in reward regions (caudate and thalamus) than S-REs in the congruent condition. In the incongruent condition, S-REs showed stronger functional connectivity between the conflict-monitoring region (anterior cingulate cortex) and inhibitory-control regions (inferior frontal gyrus [IFG] and medial frontal gyrus) than US-REs. In both the conditions, increased activation of the insula, putamen, middle frontal gyrus, and IFG could predict increased food intake among US-REs in the following week. Furthermore, in both the conditions, increased IFG activation could predict decreased food cravings among S-REs during the following week. Our results suggest that US-REs have a strong reward response to food. Compared to US-REs, S-REs are more guided more by the goal of weight control, and exhibit strong functional connections between the conflict-monitoring and inhibitory-control regions. Therefore, eating enjoyment and weight-control goals influence restrained eating in daily life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuemeng Zhang
- School of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China; Research Center for Brain and Cognitive Science, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
| | - Ke Wen
- Research Center for Brain and Cognitive Science, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
| | - Jinfeng Han
- School of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Hong Chen
- School of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.
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