Binge eating disorder and morbid obesity are associated with lowered mu-opioid receptor availability in the brain

Both morbid obesity and binge eating disorder (BED) have previously been linked with aberrant brain opioid function. Behaviorally these two conditions are however different suggesting also differences in neurotransmitter function. Here we directly compared mu-opioid receptor (MOR) availability between morbidly obese and BED subjects. Seven BED and nineteen morbidly obese (non-BED) patients, and thirty matched control subjects underwent positron emission tomography (PET) with MOR-specific ligand [11C]carfentanil.

Source: Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging - March 9, 2018 Category: Psychiatry Authors: Juho Joutsa, Henry K. Karlsson, Joonas Majuri, Pirjo Nuutila, Semi Helin, Valtteri Kaasinen, Lauri Nummenmaa Source Type: research