A genome-wide association study of anorexia nervosa

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a complex and heritable eating disorder characterized by dangerously low body weight. Neither candidate gene studies nor an initial genome-wide association study (GWAS) have yielded significant and replicated results. We performed a GWAS in 2907 cases with AN from 14 countries (15 sites) and 14 860 ancestrally matched controls as part of the Genetic Consortium for AN (GCAN) and the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium 3 (WTCCC3). Individual association analyses were conducted in each stratum and meta-analyzed across all 15 discovery data sets. Seventy-six (72 independent) single nucleotide polymorphisms were taken forward for in silico (two data sets) or de novo (13 data sets) replication genotyping in 2677 independent AN cases and 8629 European ancestry controls along with 458 AN cases and 421 controls from Japan. The final global meta-analysis across discovery and replication data sets comprised 5551 AN cases and 21 080 controls. AN subtype analyses (1606 AN restricting; 1445 AN binge-purge) were performed. No findings reached genome-wide significance. Two intronic variants were suggestively associated: rs9839776 (P=3.01 × 10(-7)) in SOX2OT and rs17030795 (P=5.84 × 10(-6)) in PPP3CA. Two additional signals were specific to Europeans: rs1523921 (P=5.76 × 10(-)(6)) between CUL3 and FAM124B and rs1886797 (P=8.05 × 10(-)(6)) near SPATA13. Comparing discovery with replication results, 76% of the effects were in the same direction, an observation highly unlikely to be due to chance (P=4 × 10(-6)), strongly suggesting that true findings exist but our sample, the largest yet reported, was underpowered for their detection. The accrual of large genotyped AN case-control samples should be an immediate priority for the field.

Signs of nutrition in ADHD children

According to current studies and clinical practice ADHD children show probable changes in growth and development, mainly in signs of nutrition. ADHD can be associated with higher predisposition to obesity, higher values of signs of nutrition, as body mass index or higher value of fat. Growth and weight changes in ADHD children are usually described in connection to stimulants use, the most common medication of the disorder. However, present research confirmed that these changes could be more typical for the disorder than for the treatment. These characteristics are considered to be directly connected with the disorder.

The presented study compared anthropometric characteristics - mainly signs of nutrition - skin folds, abdominal circumference, in medicated and non-medicated ADHD boys (n = 104, age 4–16 years) with the normal non-clinical population. The results of the presented study showed significant differences between children with ADHD and those without the diagnosis. The differences found to be statistically significant (p < 0.01) being signs of nutrition (percentage of fat, abdominal circumference) and also growth suppression (lower body height). Differences between the medicated and non-medicated groups corresponded only to a lower value of body fat in the medicated children.

ADHD can higher values of nutrition signs (percentage of fat, abdominal circumference, BMI, weight) in comparison to normal population. It could be caused by specific feeding customs which should be monitored in further studies.

Basal and exercise-induced sympathetic nervous activity and lipolysis in adipose tissue of patients with anorexia nervosa

BACKGROUND

The sympathetic nervous system plays an important role in the regulation of adipose tissue (AT) lipolysis, which is a key step in the metabolic processes leading to the decrease of fat mass. The present study was designed to determine in vivo basal and exercise-stimulated lipolysis and concentrations of catecholamines, the major hormones controlling lipolysis, in subcutaneous abdominal AT in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN), characterized by self-induced starvation and excessive exercises resulting in severe malnutrition and fat store loss. The results of local catecholamines and glycerol levels were compared with those in plasma in both experimental groups.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

An in vivo microdialysis technique was used for the assessment of norepinephrine, dihydroxyphenylalanine, dihydroxyphenylacetic acid and glycerol concentrations in subcutaneous AT of 10 women with AN (body mass index: 15.57 +/- 0.55 kg m(-2)) and 10 age-matched controls (body mass index: 21.56 +/- 0.41 kg m(-2)). Both the AN patients and the control subjects underwent a 1.5 W kg(-1) exercise test.

RESULTS

Basal AT norepinephrine concentrations were increased in the AN patients in comparison with the controls. Basal AT glycerol concentrations were similar in both groups. During exercise, a local increase in the AT norepinephrine and glycerol concentrations was observed in the AN patients only. In contrast to the controls, the basal AT dihydroxyphenylalanine and dihydroxyphenylacetic acid levels in the AN patients were high and remained unchanged during exercise. Basal and exercise-stimulated plasma norepinephrine, dihydroxyphenylalanine, dihydroxyphenylacetic acid and glycerol levels were not different in the AN patients and healthy controls.

CONCLUSION

Our study provides evidence of elevated baseline and exercise-induced sympathetic nervous activity and exercise-induced lipolysis in abdominal AT of AN patients.

Community violence and inpatient assaults: neurobiological deficits

The goals of this study were to examine the relationship between community violence and inpatient assaults and to identify neurological and neuropsychological deficits underlying violent behavior. Thirty-three inpatients with a history of community violence were compared with 69 patients who did not have such a history. Inpatient assaults were recorded for 4 weeks; a neurological/neuropsychological battery was then administered. Patients without community violence were more likely to show transient or no violence while in the hospital. Patients with community violence performed more poorly on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test and on psychomotor tasks, impairments that are consistent with frontal lobe dysfunction. Inpatient assaults were not associated with these neuropsychological impairments. They were related, however, to impairment on frontal motor programming tasks and a history of community violence.

Study of chronic schizophrenics with positive and negative family histories of psychosis

We found no differences in clinical symptoms among chronic schizophrenics with a family history of psychosis (n = 18) and without any affected relatives (n = 22). The lifetime morbidity risks of psychosis in the former group were 0.59 +/- 0.13 for children and 0.33 +/- 0.07 for siblings.