Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Weichen Song, Wei Qian, Weidi Wang, Shunying Yu, Guan Ning Lin
Summary: The study identified causal relationships between brain structures and neuropsychiatric disorders using Mendelian randomization, finding that SLF degeneration may be a risk factor for AN, and DTI variations could be causally related to disorders like BP and AN. White matter structure may have a larger impact on neuropsychiatric disorders than subregion volumes.
Review
Clinical Neurology
Joseph A. Wonderlich, Mariya Bershad, Joanna E. Steinglass
Summary: Studies using fMRI have shown that cognitive control systems are affected in individuals with eating disorders, with the least pronounced effects seen in AN. The reinforcing value of food may be reduced in AN, but individuals with BN and BED show hyperactivation to rewarding food-related stimuli. These findings provide insight into potential neurobiological mechanisms underlying eating disorders.
NEUROPSYCHIATRIC DISEASE AND TREATMENT
(2021)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Enrico Collantoni, Tenconi Elena, Solmi Marco, Meneguzzo Paolo, Marzola Enrica, D'Agata Federico, Gotti Stefano, Abbate Daga Giovanni, Manara Renzo, Favaro Angela
Summary: The study found that patients with anorexia nervosa have reduced hippocampal volume compared to healthy women, with correlations to body mass index, anxiety, and drive for thinness. This suggests that malnutrition may play a role in the morphological alterations of the hippocampus in AN.
EUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW
(2021)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Karin Foerde, Janet E. Schebendach, Lauren Davis, Nathaniel Daw, B. Timothy Walsh, Daphna Shohamy, Joanna E. Steinglass
Summary: Restrictive eating is a central feature of anorexia nervosa (AN) and other eating disorders. This study examined the behavioral and neural mechanisms of restrictive eating among individuals with and without eating disorders. The findings showed that healthy individuals tended to choose high-fat foods, while patients with AN focused more on the healthiness of the food. Dorsal striatal activation associated with food choice was most pronounced among individuals with AN, and it was significantly associated with selecting fewer high-fat choices and lower caloric intake.
PSYCHOLOGICAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Stefanie Trinh, Vanessa Kogel, Lilly Kneisel, Elena Mueller-Limberger, Beate Herpertz-Dahlmann, Cordian Beyer, Jochen Seitz
Summary: The gut microbiota composition plays a causal role in body weight regulation and psychiatric disorders such as anorexia nervosa (AN). Previous research has shown that chronic starvation in an AN animal model leads to changes in the microbiome and reductions in brain volume and astrocytes. This study analyzed whether these alterations are reversible after refeeding. The findings suggest that the microbiome alterations in the ABA model are primarily starvation-related and support the use of this model in investigating the effects of starvation on the microbiota-gut-brain axis in AN.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Microbiology
Stein Frostad
Summary: This article discusses the association between anorexia nervosa (AN) and the gut microbiota-brain (GMB) axis, proposing a hypothesis that changes in the GMB axis due to malnutrition drive AN. Malnutrition-induced alterations in gut microbiota may increase sensitivity to anxiety-inducing gastrointestinal hormones, leading to the development and maintenance of AN.
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Pauline Tirelle, Colin Salaun, Alexandre Kauffmann, Christine Bole-Feysot, Charlene Guerin, Marion Hure, Alexis Goichon, Asma Amamou, Jonathan Breton, Jean-Luc do Rego, Pierre Dechelotte, Najate Achamrah, Moise Coeffier
Summary: The role of microbiota in eating disorders has been found to be significant. Previous research has shown that lipopolysaccharides induce anorexia and body weight decrease through the activation of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). In the activity-based anorexia (ABA) mouse model, an increase of TLR4 expression in intestinal epithelial cells (IEC) has been observed. This study aimed to investigate the role of TLR4 in IEC in the ABA model in male and female mice.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Erik Schele, Iris Stoltenborg, Anders Xie, Fiona Peris-Sampedro, Roger A. H. Adan, Suzanne L. Dickson
Summary: This study aims to investigate the activation of orexin neurons during severe anorectic state and the potential of suvorexant, a dual orexin receptor antagonist, in reducing excessive physical activity. The findings indicate that a large population of orexin neurons are activated in the ABA mouse model and that peripheral administration of suvorexant decreases food anticipatory activity. Orexin may be a suitable target for treating hyperactivity in AN, and further research is recommended to examine the efficacy of suvorexant in aiding AN patients in controlling excessive activity.
EUROPEAN NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Anna Staffeld, Sadaf Gill, Annelie Zimmermann, Natalie Boege, Katharina Schuster, Stephan Lang, Markus Kipp, Rupert Palme, Linda Frintrop
Summary: This study aimed to establish a murine AN model and found that only when the weight reduction reached 25%, the AN-related symptoms could be observed. These findings provide new targets for the study of the pathophysiology and treatment interventions of AN.
Review
Psychiatry
Katrien F. M. Bracke, Cathelijne P. M. Steegers, Tess van der Harst, Marjolein H. G. Dremmen, Meike W. Vernooij, Tonya J. H. White, Gwen C. Dieleman
Summary: This article systematically reviewed the predictive value of structural and functional brain imaging in predicting the disease course of anorexia nervosa (AN). The findings showed that lower brain volumes and smaller increase in specific brain regions were associated with worse clinical outcome. Additionally, certain measures from functional MRI were also found to have predictive value. However, there is a lack of replication studies and further research is needed to validate these neuroimaging measures in AN patients.
JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH
(2023)
Editorial Material
Psychology, Clinical
Scott J. Crow
Summary: In this issue of International Journal of Eating Disorders, Walsh et al. review the research comparing atypical anorexia nervosa (atypical AN) and AN. Most differences observed were related to weight, while psychopathology and complications were similar. The findings suggest that atypical AN and AN are not fundamentally different, emphasizing the need for further research. The high prevalence of atypical AN in clinical settings highlights the importance of continuing research.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EATING DISORDERS
(2023)
Review
Neurosciences
Kai S. Thomas, Rosalind E. Birch, Catherine R. G. Jones, Ross E. Vanderwert
Summary: This review investigates executive functioning in anorexia nervosa (AN) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), revealing both similarities and differences in behavioral and neuroimaging findings. It provides important considerations for future research and contributes to the understanding of transdiagnostic correlates.
FRONTIERS IN HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Katarzyna Jowik, Monika Dmitrzak-Weglarz, Natalia Pytlinska, Anna Jasinska-Mikolajczyk, Agnieszka Slopien, Marta Tyszkiewicz-Nwafor
Summary: This study evaluated the plasma levels of APE-13 and ASP, as well as related metabolic and psychometric parameters, in patients with anorexia nervosa. The findings suggest that APE-13 and ASP may serve as biomarkers for anorexia nervosa, and their levels are associated with eating behavior, emotional behavior, and the severity of psychopathological symptoms of eating disorders.
Editorial Material
Medicine, General & Internal
Daniel O'Meara, Lea Sheward, Sydney Hartman-Munick, Jessica Addison, Aya Abu-El-Haija
Summary: This passage describes a 17-year-old girl with a history of anxiety and anorexia nervosa who presented with a range of physical discomfort symptoms and was found to have multiple electrolyte imbalances.
NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Nutrition & Dietetics
Heather M. McDonald, Tony Lin, Lulu L. C. D. Bursztyn
Summary: A young woman presented with significant weight loss and malnutrition due to decreased food intake, initially diagnosed with ARFID but later found to have a suprasellar and pineal germinoma. While there have been cases of germinomas misdiagnosed as anorexia nervosa, this is the first reported case of a multifocal germinoma presenting as ARFID. The criteria for diagnosing ARFID do not include body image distortion, potentially leading to misdiagnosis.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Matilde Nerattini, Federica Rubino, Annachiara Arnone, Cristina Polito, Salvatore Mazzeo, Gemma Lombardi, Giulia Puccini, Benedetta Nacmias, Maria Teresa De Cristofaro, Sandro Sorbi, Alberto Pupi, Roberto Sciagra, Valentina Bessi, Valentina Berti
Summary: The study aims to interpret discrepancies between amyloid PET and CSF biomarkers in Alzheimer's disease diagnosis, utilizing a combination of different imaging and biomarker analysis techniques to improve diagnostic accuracy.
NEUROLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Psychiatry
Andrea Patti, Gabriele Santarelli, Giulio D'Anna, Andrea Ballerini, Valdo Ricca
Summary: Aberrant salience plays a major role in psychotic proneness. Cannabis use, personality traits, psychotic-like symptoms, and self-transcendence dimensions are closely related to aberrant salience. Among cannabis users, subthreshold psychotic experiences are predominant, while personality traits are more relevant among nonusers.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Giulia Giacomucci, Giulia Galdo, Cristina Polito, Valentina Berti, Sonia Padiglioni, Salvatore Mazzeo, Eleonora Chiaro, Maria Teresa De Cristofaro, Silvia Bagnoli, Benedetta Nacmias, Sandro Sorbi, Valentina Bessi
Summary: This study aims to assess empathy deficits and their neural correlates in patients with subjective cognitive decline (SCD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and Alzheimer's disease (AD) dementia. The study found that impairment of cognitive empathy starts at the MCI stage and extends to dementia. Increased emotional contagion may be related to dysfunction in specific brain regions.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Cecilia Boccalini, Giulia Carli, Giacomo Tondo, Cristina Polito, Eleonora Catricala, Valentina Berti, Valentina Bessi, Sandro Sorbi, Sandro Iannaccone, Valentina Esposito, Stefano F. Cappa, Daniela Perani
Summary: In the semantic variant of Primary Progressive Aphasia (sv-PPA), there are extensive brain metabolic connectivity reorganization and functional alterations, particularly affecting frontal, temporal, and parietal regions. Compared to healthy controls, sv-PPA patients show functional isolation of the left anterior temporal lobe, decreased connections in temporo-occipital regions and contralateral homologous regions, increased connectivity to the dorsal parietal cortex from the spared posterior temporal cortex, and disruption of large-scale limbic brain networks. The severe functional derangement of the left anterior temporal lobe in sv-PPA may lead to extensive connectivity reconfiguration involving multiple brain regions.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Giovanni Castellini, Alessio Pellegrino, Livio Tarchi, Maria Calabrese, Maria Boddi, Valdo Ricca, Gianfranco Costanzo, Pietro Amedeo Modesti
Summary: The study found that first-generation Chinese migrants in Italy had a lower level of body-size perception compared to native Italians. In the Chinese cohort, factors like female gender, BMI, and years spent in Italy contributed to a desire to be thinner, while age showed a negative impact. The study suggests the importance of prevention programs specifically targeted towards men.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH
(2022)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
E. Limoncin, G. Ciocca, G. Castellini, A. Sansone, F. Cavalieri, F. Cavallo, T. Cocchiaro, V Ricca, G. di Lorenzo, A. Rossi, A. D. Fisher, V Rochira, G. Corona, E. A. Jannini
Summary: Hypersexual behavior has been broadly studied due to its unclear etiology, nature, and manifestation in relation to organic and psychopathological conditions. This position statement aims to provide evidence that hypersexuality should be considered as a symptom of an underlying condition and to offer specific statements for assessment and diagnosis based on recent literature. The importance of evaluating comorbid psychopathological and organic conditions and considering the impact of pharmacological treatments is emphasized.
JOURNAL OF ENDOCRINOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION
(2022)
Article
Neuroimaging
Livio Tarchi, Stefano Damiani, Teresa Fantoni, Tiziana Pisano, Giovanni Castellini, Pierluigi Politi, Valdo Ricca
Summary: Eigenvector centrality has shown potential in the field of psychiatry, particularly in relation to ADHD. This study explored aberrant connectivity in ADHD using Voxel-Mirrored Homotopic Connectivity (VMHC) and found no differences between diagnostic groups. However, significantly higher eigenvector centrality values were observed in the ADHD group in specific brain regions. The findings suggest that eigenvector centrality may be more relevant to ADHD psychopathology, while VMHC is consistently linked to age.
BRAIN IMAGING AND BEHAVIOR
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Annachiara Arnone, Michela Allocca, Rossella Di Dato, Giulia Puccini, Iashar Laghai, Federica Rubino, Matilde Nerattini, Silvia Ramat, Gemma Lombardi, Camilla Ferrari, Valentina Bessi, Sandro Sorbi, Maria Teresa De Cristofaro, Cristina Polito, Valentina Berti
Summary: This study demonstrates the additional value of combining voxel-based analyses with qualitative assessment of brain PET images in the differential diagnosis of neurodegenerative parkinsonian disorders. The use of hypometabolism and hypermetabolism maps significantly increases diagnostic accuracy and clinical confidence. Hypermetabolism maps can also provide support, particularly for less experienced evaluators.
NEUROLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Salvatore Mazzeo, Cristina Polito, Michael Lassi, Silvia Bagnoli, Marta Mattei, Sonia Padiglioni, Valentina Berti, Gemma Lombardi, Giulia Giacomucci, Maria Teresa De Cristofaro, Alessandro Passeri, Camilla Ferrari, Benedetta Nacmias, Alberto Mazzoni, Sandro Sorbi, Valentina Bessi
Summary: This study aimed to identify features associated with different disease trajectories in AD-related PPA, finding that impaired writing and high t-tau concentration may be related to progression to total loss of speech, while impaired single-word comprehension may be associated with loss of functional autonomy. Additionally, different brain metabolic patterns were observed between progressing and non-progressing patients in terms of speech and functional autonomy loss.
NEUROBIOLOGY OF AGING
(2022)
Article
Geriatrics & Gerontology
Eleonora Catricala, Gaia C. Santi, Cristina Polito, Francesca Conca, Valentina Esposito, Silvia P. Caminiti, Cecilia Boccalini, Valentina Berti, Valentina Bessi, Alessandra Marcone, Sandro Iannaccone, Sandro Sorbi, Daniela Perani, Stefano F. Cappa
Summary: This study investigates the relationship between qualitative errors in language tasks and brain metabolism in PPA patients. The results show that semantic, syntactic, and working memory errors are associated with specific regional metabolic changes. The findings suggest that different neural systems are involved in different subcomponents of working memory. The study also highlights the overlapping profiles of mixed PPA with different phenotypes in a qualitative multidimensional space.
NEUROBIOLOGY OF AGING
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Andrea Patti, Gabriele Santarelli, Ottone Baccaredda Boy, Isotta Fascina, Arianna Ida Altomare, Andrea Ballerini, Valdo Ricca
Summary: This study translated the Embodied Sense-of-Self Scale (ESSS) into Italian and examined its factor structure, reliability, and validity in an Italian sample. The three-factor structure of the ESSS was confirmed, although three different factors emerged in the Italian sample. The measure demonstrated good reliability and validity, showing consistent relationships with other variables. The 19-item Italian version of the ESSS is a suitable measure for assessing embodiment abnormalities in Italian samples.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Giulia Giacomucci, Cristina Polito, Valentina Berti, Sonia Padiglioni, Giulia Galdo, Salvatore Mazzeo, Enrico Bergamin, Valentina Moschini, Carmen Morinelli, Claudia Nuti, Maria Teresa De Cristofaro, Assunta Ingannato, Silvia Bagnoli, Benedetta Nacmias, Sandro Sorbi, Valentina Bessi
Summary: The study aimed to assess empathy deficit and neuronal correlates in patients with logopenic primary progressive aphasia (lv-PPA) and compare it with amnesic Alzheimer's disease (AD). The findings showed that both lv-PPA and AD patients had decreased cognitive empathy and increased personal distress over time. The study also found that specific brain regions with metabolic dysfunction were associated with empathy deficits.
JOURNAL OF PERSONALIZED MEDICINE
(2023)
Review
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Livio Tarchi, Giuseppe Pierpaolo Merola, Ottone Baccaredda-Boy, Francesca Arganini, Emanuele Cassioli, Eleonora Rossi, Mario Maggi, David S. Baldwin, Valdo Ricca, Giovanni Castellini
Summary: The purpose of this systematic review was to investigate the adverse effects of SSRIs on sexual function and determine if these effects persist after discontinuation. The review found limited evidence of sexual dysfunction following SSRI discontinuation and was unable to establish a cause-effect relationship. However, it highlighted the need for further research to explore the relationship between SSRI exposure and persistent sexual dysfunction and to develop new treatment options.
PHARMACOEPIDEMIOLOGY AND DRUG SAFETY
(2023)
Review
Psychology, Multidisciplinary
Giuseppe Pierpaolo Merola, Ottone Baccaredda Boy, Isotta Fascina, Vincenzo Pecoraro, Andrea Falone, Andrea Patti, Gabriele Santarelli, David Colin Cicero, Andrea Ballerini, Valdo Ricca
Summary: This study evaluated the psychometric properties and screening potential of the Aberrant Salience Inventory (ASI), finding that ASI is a feasible screening tool for mental disorders and proposing a new three-factor model to explain the subscale structure of ASI.
SCANDINAVIAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Eleonora Rossi, Emanuele Cassioli, Lucia Cecci, Francesca Arganini, Michela Martelli, Carolina Alberta Redaelli, Simona Anselmetti, Sara Bertelli, Isabel Fernandez, Valdo Ricca, Giovanni Castellini
Summary: Adding EMDR to CBT-E may be beneficial for patients with AN reporting moderate/severe CM. Patients with trauma history showed improvements in BMI and ED-specific psychopathology after treatment, with the CBT + EMDR group demonstrating greater improvements. Dissociation played a mediating role in the reduction of ED symptoms in traumatised patients.
EUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW
(2023)