Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
Volume 24, Issue 1, Pages 54-63Publisher
OXFORD UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1093/ijnp/pyaa040
Keywords
Hypocretin; high-fat food; sucrose; motivation; behavioral economics; SB334867
Funding
- United States Public Health Service (PHS) [T32DA7288-22, F30DA035065]
- National Institute on Drug Abuse [K99DA045765]
- NIDA [R01-DA006214]
- National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia C.J. Martin fellowship [1072706]
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The study found that females have a higher demand for palatable food at low prices compared to males, indicating sex-dependent differences in hedonic aspects of food intake. Orexin system, particularly orexin-1 receptor, may be associated with these behavioral differences between genders.
Background: The prevalence of eating disorders, including binge eating disorder, is significantly higher in women. These findings are mirrored by preclinical studies, which indicate that female rats have a higher preference for palatable food and show greater binge-like eating compared with male rats. Methods: Here, we describe a novel within-session behavioral-economic paradigm that allows for the simultaneous measurement of the intake at null cost (Q(0)) and normalized demand elasticity (alpha) of 3 types of palatable food (low fat, high fat, and chocolate sucrose pellets) via demand curve analysis. In light of evidence that the orexin (hypocretin) system is critically involved in reward and feeding behaviors, we also examined the role of orexin function in sex differences of economic demand for palatable foods. Results: The novel within-session behavioral-economic approach revealed that female rats have higher intake (demand) than males for all palatable foods at low cost (normalized to body weight) but no difference in intake at higher prices, indicating sex-dependent differences in the hedonic, but not motivational, aspects of palatable food. Immediately following behavioral-economic testing, we observed more orexin-expressing neurons and Fos expression (measure of recent neural activation) in these neurons in female rats compared with male rats. Moreover, the orexin-1 receptor antagonist SB334867 reduced both low- and high-cost intake for palatable food in both male and female rats. Conclusions: These findings provide evidence of higher demand at low prices for palatable food in females and indicate that these behavioral differences may be associated with sexual dimorphism in orexin system function.
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