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Ramsay S, Allison K, Temples HS, Boccuto L, Sarasua SM. Inclusion of the severe and enduring anorexia nervosa phenotype in genetics research: a scoping review. J Eat Disord 2024; 12:53. [PMID: 38685102 PMCID: PMC11059621 DOI: 10.1186/s40337-024-01009-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Anorexia nervosa has one of the highest mortality rates of all mental illnesses. For those who survive, less than 70% fully recover, with many going on to develop a more severe and enduring phenotype. Research now suggests that genetics plays a role in the development and persistence of anorexia nervosa. Inclusion of participants with more severe and enduring illness in genetics studies of anorexia nervosa is critical. OBJECTIVE The primary goal of this review was to assess the inclusion of participants meeting the criteria for the severe enduring anorexia nervosa phenotype in genetics research by (1) identifying the most widely used defining criteria for severe enduring anorexia nervosa and (2) performing a review of the genetics literature to assess the inclusion of participants meeting the identified criteria. METHODS Searches of the genetics literature from 2012 to 2023 were performed in the PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science databases. Publications were selected per the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). The criteria used to define the severe and enduring anorexia nervosa phenotype were derived by how often they were used in the literature since 2017. The publications identified through the literature search were then assessed for inclusion of participants meeting these criteria. RESULTS most prevalent criteria used to define severe enduring anorexia nervosa in the literature were an illness duration of ≥ 7 years, lack of positive response to at least two previous evidence-based treatments, a body mass index meeting the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 for extreme anorexia nervosa, and an assessment of psychological and/or behavioral severity indicating a significant impact on quality of life. There was a lack of consistent identification and inclusion of those meeting the criteria for severe enduring anorexia nervosa in the genetics literature. DISCUSSION This lack of consistent identification and inclusion of patients with severe enduring anorexia nervosa in genetics research has the potential to hamper the isolation of risk loci and the development of new, more effective treatment options for patients with anorexia nervosa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Ramsay
- Healthcare Genetics and Genomics Program, School of Nursing, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA.
| | - Kendra Allison
- School of Nursing, Clemson University , Clemson, SC 29634, USA
| | - Heide S Temples
- School of Nursing, Clemson University , Clemson, SC 29634, USA
| | - Luigi Boccuto
- Healthcare Genetics and Genomics Program, School of Nursing, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
| | - Sara M Sarasua
- Healthcare Genetics and Genomics Program, School of Nursing, Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634, USA
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Mataix-Cols D, Fernández de la Cruz L, De Schipper E, Kuja-Halkola R, Bulik CM, Crowley JJ, Neufeld J, Rück C, Tammimies K, Lichtenstein P, Bölte S, Beucke JC. In search of environmental risk factors for obsessive-compulsive disorder: study protocol for the OCDTWIN project. BMC Psychiatry 2023; 23:442. [PMID: 37328750 PMCID: PMC10273515 DOI: 10.1186/s12888-023-04897-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The causes of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) remain unknown. Gene-searching efforts are well underway, but the identification of environmental risk factors is at least as important and should be a priority because some of them may be amenable to prevention or early intervention strategies. Genetically informative studies, particularly those employing the discordant monozygotic (MZ) twin design, are ideally suited to study environmental risk factors. This protocol paper describes the study rationale, aims, and methods of OCDTWIN, an open cohort of MZ twin pairs who are discordant for the diagnosis of OCD. METHODS OCDTWIN has two broad aims. In Aim 1, we are recruiting MZ twin pairs from across Sweden, conducting thorough clinical assessments, and building a biobank of biological specimens, including blood, saliva, urine, stool, hair, nails, and multimodal brain imaging. A wealth of early life exposures (e.g., perinatal variables, health-related information, psychosocial stressors) are available through linkage with the nationwide registers and the Swedish Twin Registry. Blood spots stored in the Swedish phenylketonuria (PKU) biobank will be available to extract DNA, proteins, and metabolites, providing an invaluable source of biomaterial taken at birth. In Aim 2, we will perform within-pair comparisons of discordant MZ twins, which will allow us to isolate unique environmental risk factors that are in the causal pathway to OCD, while strictly controlling for genetic and early shared environmental influences. To date (May 2023), 43 pairs of twins (21 discordant for OCD) have been recruited. DISCUSSION OCDTWIN hopes to generate unique insights into environmental risk factors that are in the causal pathway to OCD, some of which have the potential of being actionable targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Mataix-Cols
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Stockholm Health Care Services, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
| | - Lorena Fernández de la Cruz
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Stockholm Health Care Services, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Elles De Schipper
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Stockholm Health Care Services, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ralf Kuja-Halkola
- Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Cynthia M Bulik
- Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - James J Crowley
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Stockholm Health Care Services, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, USA
| | - Janina Neufeld
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders at Karolinska Institutet (KIND), Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study (SCAS), Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Christian Rück
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Stockholm Health Care Services, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Kristiina Tammimies
- Stockholm Health Care Services, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders at Karolinska Institutet (KIND), Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Astrid Lindgren Children's Hospital, Karolinska University Hospital, Region Stockholm, Solna, Sweden
| | - Paul Lichtenstein
- Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Sven Bölte
- Stockholm Health Care Services, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders at Karolinska Institutet (KIND), Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Curtin Autism Research Group, Curtin School of Allied Health, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Jan C Beucke
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Institute for Systems Medicine, Faculty of Human Medicine, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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Steding J, Ritschel F, Boehm I, Geisler D, King JA, Roessner V, Smolka MN, Zepf FD, Ehrlich S. The effects of acute tryptophan depletion on instrumental reward learning in anorexia nervosa - an fMRI study. Psychol Med 2023; 53:3426-3436. [PMID: 35343412 PMCID: PMC10277771 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291721005493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Revised: 10/15/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The serotonin (5-HT) hypothesis of anorexia nervosa (AN) posits that individuals predisposed toward or recovered from AN (recAN) have a central nervous hyperserotonergic state and therefore restrict food intake as a means to reduce 5-HT availability (via diminished tryptophan-derived precursor supply) and alleviate associated negative mood states. Importantly, the 5-HT system has also been generally implicated in reward processing, which has also been shown to be altered in AN. METHODS In this double-blind crossover study, 22 individuals recAN and 25 healthy control participants (HC) underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while performing an established instrumental reward learning paradigm during acute tryptophan depletion (ATD; a dietary intervention that lowers central nervous 5-HT availability) as well as a sham depletion. RESULTS On a behavioral level, the main effects of reward and ATD were evident, but no group differences were found. fMRI analyses revealed a group × ATD × reward level interaction in the ventral anterior insula during reward anticipation as well as in the medial orbitofrontal cortex during reward consumption. DISCUSSION The precise pattern of results is suggestive of a 'normalization' of reward-related neural responses during ATD in recAN compared to HC. Our results lend further evidence to the 5-HT hypothesis of AN. Decreasing central nervous 5-HT synthesis and availability during ATD and possibly also by dieting may be a means to normalize 5-HT availability and associated brain processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julius Steding
- Translational Developmental Neuroscience Section, Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Franziska Ritschel
- Translational Developmental Neuroscience Section, Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Ilka Boehm
- Translational Developmental Neuroscience Section, Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Daniel Geisler
- Translational Developmental Neuroscience Section, Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Joseph A. King
- Translational Developmental Neuroscience Section, Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Veit Roessner
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University Hospital C. G. Carus, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Michael N. Smolka
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuroimaging Center, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Florian Daniel Zepf
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany
| | - Stefan Ehrlich
- Translational Developmental Neuroscience Section, Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
- Eating Disorder Treatment and Research Center, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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Mataix-Cols D, de la Cruz LF, de Schipper E, Kuja-Halkola R, Bulik CM, Crowley JJ, Neufeld J, Rück C, Tammimies K, Lichtenstein P, Bölte S, Beucke JC. In search of environmental risk factors for obsessive-compulsive disorder: Study protocol for the OCDTWIN project. RESEARCH SQUARE 2023:rs.3.rs-2897566. [PMID: 37215041 PMCID: PMC10197758 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-2897566/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Background The causes of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) remain unknown. Gene-searching efforts are well underway, but the identification of environmental risk factors is at least as important and should be a priority because some of them may be amenable to prevention or early intervention strategies. Genetically informative studies, particularly those employing the discordant monozygotic (MZ) twin design, are ideally suited to study environmental risk factors. This protocol paper describes the study rationale, aims, and methods of OCDTWIN, an open cohort of MZ twin pairs who are discordant for the diagnosis of OCD. Methods OCDTWIN has two broad aims. In Aim 1, we are recruiting MZ twin pairs from across Sweden, conducting thorough clinical assessments, and building a biobank of biological specimens, including blood, saliva, urine, stool, hair, nails, and multimodal brain imaging. A wealth of early life exposures (e.g., perinatal variables, health-related information, psychosocial stressors) are available through linkage with the nationwide registers and the Swedish Twin Registry. Blood spots stored in the Swedish phenylketonuria (PKU) biobank will be available to extract DNA, proteins, and metabolites, providing an invaluable source of biomaterial taken at birth. In Aim 2, we will perform within-pair comparisons of discordant MZ twins, which will allow us to isolate unique environmental risk factors that are in the causal pathway to OCD, while strictly controlling for genetic and early shared environmental influences. To date (May 2023), 43 pairs of twins (21 discordant for OCD) have been recruited. Discussion OCDTWIN hopes to generate unique insights into environmental risk factors that are in the causal pathway to OCD, some of which have the potential of being actionable targets.
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No effects of acute tryptophan depletion on anxiety or mood in weight-recovered female patients with anorexia nervosa. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2023; 273:209-217. [PMID: 35511296 PMCID: PMC9957824 DOI: 10.1007/s00406-022-01414-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Previous studies have suggested that individuals recovered from anorexia nervosa (AN) are characterized by increased serotonergic (5-HT) activity that might be related to elevated levels of anxiety. Assuming these traits to be also present in individuals at risk for AN, it was further hypothesized that restricting food intake might be a means to temporarily alleviate dysphoric affective states by reducing central nervous availability of tryptophan (TRP), the sole precursor of 5-HT. One study that supported this hypothesis found anxiolytic effects in individuals with a history of AN during an experimentally induced short-term depletion of TRP supply to the brain. METHODS In this placebo-controlled, double-blind cross-over study, 22 patients weight-recovered from AN (recAN) and 25 healthy control participants (HC) completed questionnaires assessing anxiety and momentary mood during acute tryptophan depletion (ATD), a dietary intervention that lowers central 5-HT synthesis. RESULTS The ATD procedure effectively reduced the ratio of TRP to competing for large neutral amino acids in the peripheral blood, indicating decreased TRP supply to the brain. Effects of ATD on anxiety and mood did not differ between recAN and HC. Bayesian null hypothesis testing confirmed these initial results. DISCUSSION Our results do not support the hypothesis that short-term depletion of TRP and its impact on the brain 5-HT reduces anxiety or improves mood in AN. As the evidence for the role of 5-HT dysfunction on affective processes in patients with AN is limited, further studies are needed to assess its relevance in the pathophysiology of AN.
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Kitajima T, Otani R, Inoue T, Matsushima N, Matsubara N, Sakuta R. Sensory processing in children and adolescents shortly after the onset of anorexia nervosa: a pilot study. Biopsychosoc Med 2022; 16:27. [PMID: 36510231 PMCID: PMC9743604 DOI: 10.1186/s13030-022-00256-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2022] [Accepted: 11/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Alterations in sensory processing, such as vision, taste, and interoceptive sensation, have been reported in adult anorexia nervosa (AN). Whether these symptoms are traits, states, or "scars" due to chronic starvation has not been fully established. Based on the hypothesis that alterations in sensory processing also occur in adolescent AN in the early stages of the disease, the present study was conducted using both self-administered and parent-administered sensory processing questionnaires. METHODS Children and adolescents with anorexia nervosa treated at a single tertiary eating disorder treatment center in Japan (AN group) and female junior high school students attending a public junior high school in Saitama Prefecture, Japan (healthy control group: HC group) were included in the study. The Sensory Profile (SP) and Adult/Adolescent Sensory Profile (AASP) were administered to the participants and their caregivers. In addition, we collected demographic data and administered the Children's Eating Attitude Test and Autism-Spectrum Quotient Children's version. RESULTS Seventeen children and adolescents were enrolled in the AN group, and 63 were enrolled in the HC group. There was no statistically significant difference between the AN and HC groups in the quadrant scores of the AASP. In the SP, the Sensory Avoiding score and the Emotional/Social response score were higher in the AN group than in the HC group. CONCLUSION From the parents' point of view, the patient avoids unexpected sensory stimuli, but the patients are unaware of their own avoiding behavior in the early stages of the disease. The results suggest that sensory sensitivity in AN may be a "scar" symptom due to chronic starvation and a state symptom. Longitudinal studies from shortly after the onset with larger sample sizes are needed to gain insight into the dynamic relation between sensory processing and eating disorder pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tasuku Kitajima
- grid.416093.9Center for Child Development and Psychosomatic Medicine, Dokkyo Medical University Saitama Medical Center, Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan
| | - Ryoko Otani
- grid.416093.9Center for Child Development and Psychosomatic Medicine, Dokkyo Medical University Saitama Medical Center, Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan
| | - Takeshi Inoue
- grid.416093.9Center for Child Development and Psychosomatic Medicine, Dokkyo Medical University Saitama Medical Center, Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan
| | - Naho Matsushima
- grid.416093.9Center for Child Development and Psychosomatic Medicine, Dokkyo Medical University Saitama Medical Center, Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan
| | - Naoki Matsubara
- grid.416093.9Center for Child Development and Psychosomatic Medicine, Dokkyo Medical University Saitama Medical Center, Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan
| | - Ryoichi Sakuta
- grid.416093.9Center for Child Development and Psychosomatic Medicine, Dokkyo Medical University Saitama Medical Center, Koshigaya, Saitama, Japan
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Aberrant neural representation of food stimuli in women with acute anorexia nervosa predicts treatment outcome and is improved in weight restored individuals. Transl Psychiatry 2021; 11:532. [PMID: 34657121 PMCID: PMC8520531 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01630-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2021] [Revised: 08/18/2021] [Accepted: 09/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Anorexia nervosa (AN) has been associated with altered reward processing. We recently reported greater neural response in secondary visual areas when processing visual food stimuli in acutely underweight AN patients (acAN). In order to examine whether the observed alterations are indicative of acute undernutrition or a potential trait marker of AN, we set out to assess neural responses in acAN and in individuals weight-recovered from AN (recAN). FMRI data were collected from a total of 126 female volunteers, 35 acAN, 33 recAN, and 58 age-matched healthy controls (HC) while they viewed streams of food, social and neutral stimuli. A standard general linear model (GLM) was used to interrogate neural responses to the different stimuli in recAN vs. age-matched HC. Moreover, within-subject multivoxel pattern analyses (MVPA) in the two matched samples (acAN/HC and recAN/HC) were used to estimate neural representation of food vs. neutral, and social vs. neutral stimuli. A multiple regression analysis was conducted to test associations between the accuracy of the neural representation and treatment outcome. The GLM revealed no group differences between recAN and HC. The MVPAs showed greater classification accuracy of food stimuli in the posterior fusiform gyrus in acAN but not recAN. Classification accuracy was associated with better treatment outcome. Our findings suggest that the neural representation of food stimuli is altered in secondary visual areas in acAN and normalizes with weight recovery. Possibly this altered representation reflects attentional engagement motivating food intake, which may promote the recovery process.
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