Increased Neural Processing of Rewarding and Aversive Food Stimuli in Recovered Anorexia Nervosa

Anorexia Nervosa and Obesity are Associated with Opposite Brain Reward Response

“…Yet, premorbid traits may predispose to such changes. Carr's study (2007) also indicated that brain reward responses persist after weight recovery, which could indicate that alterations in AN during the underweight state persist long into the recovered state, which could be consistent with Cowdrey et al (2011) findings.…”

“…The application of repeated and predictable, vs random and unpredictable taste stimulus receipt most likely accounted for the opposite study results, as unexpected rather than predictable stimulation is related to dopamine activation (Schultz, 2002). The results of our study, together with Cowdrey et al (2011), of heightened brain reward response could be a biomarker of altered brain function in AN, potentially related to brain dopamine. It is unclear whether those alterations are premorbid or develop during the course of illness.…”

“…Altered brain reward function in underweight AN has not been reported before. A recent study in recovered AN found increased brain response to randomly applied taste stimuli (Cowdrey et al, 2011), whereas others found reduced brain reward response to repeated sweet taste (Wagner et al, 2008). The application of repeated and predictable, vs random and unpredictable taste stimulus receipt most likely accounted for the opposite study results, as unexpected rather than predictable stimulation is related to dopamine activation (Schultz, 2002).…”

“…For instance, in previous AN brain-imaging studies, AN individuals were more responsive than controls to images of thin bodies in the ventral striatum, a dopamine and rewardrelated brain region (Fladung et al, 2010). Recovered AN showed reduced brain response to repeated application of sweet taste in the insula and striatum (Wagner et al, 2008), but increased response in the caudate nucleus to randomly given monetary (Wagner et al, 2007) or taste reward stimuli (Cowdrey et al, 2011). Overall, the brain-imaging literature on brain reward function in AN indicates brain reward system alterations in that disorder.…”

Abnormal functional global and local brain connectivity in female patients with anorexia nervosa

“…42,43 A relatively large number of neuroimaging studies in patients with anorexia nervosa have reported group differ ences in this brain region (Appendix 1, Table S9). Most of these studies tested cue reactivity to visual or actual food stimuli and reported either insula hypo 8,9,44,45 or hyperactiv ity 6,44,46 in patients with anorexia nervosa compared with con trols. Studies investigating body image processing have yielded equally heterogeneous results with either reduced 47 or increased 48,49 insula responses to self images in patients with anorexia nervosa.…”