Relationships of eating behaviors with psychopathology, brain maturation and genetic risk for obesity in an adolescent cohort study
Unhealthy eating, a risk factor for eating disorders (EDs) and obesity, often coexists with emotional and behavioral problems; however, the underlying neurobiological mechanisms are poorly understood. Analyzing data from the longitudinal IMAGEN adolescent cohort, we investigated associations between eating behaviors, genetic predispositions for high body mass index (BMI) using polygenic scores (PGSs), and trajectories (ages 14-23 years) of ED-related psychopathology and brain maturation. Clustering analyses at age 23 years (<i>N</i> = 996) identified 3 eating groups: restrictive, emotional/uncontrolled and healthy eaters. BMI PGS, trajectories of ED symptoms, internalizing and externalizing problems, and brain maturation distinguished these groups. Decreasing volumes and thickness in several brain regions were less pronounced in restrictive and emotional/uncontrolled eaters. Smaller cerebellar volume reductions uniquely mediated the effects of BMI PGS on restrictive eating, whereas smaller volumetric reductions across multiple brain regions mediated the relationship between elevated externalizing problems and emotional/uncontrolled eating, independently of BMI. These findings shed light on distinct contributions of genetic risk, protracted brain maturation and behaviors in ED symptomatology.
Authors
- Andreas Heinz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5405-9065)
- Sylvane Desrivières (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9120-7060)
- Hugh P Garavan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8939-1014)
- Rüdiger Brühl (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0111-5996)
- Tomáš Paus (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1495-9338)
- Tobias Banaschewski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4595-1144)
- Christian Bäuchl (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5615-3645)
- Sarah Hohmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5175-6698)
- Jean‐Luc Martinot (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0136-0388)
- Marie‐Laure Paillère Martinot (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0452-2450)
- Xinyang Yu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8026-4839)
- Arun L.W. Bokde (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0114-4914)
- Juliane H. Fröhner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8493-6396)
- Christian Büchel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1965-906X)
- Nathalie Holz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6225-9267)
- Herta Flor (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4809-5398)
- Antoine Grigis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7984-3710)
- Robert Whelan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2790-7281)
- Moritz Herle (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3220-5070)
- Henrik Walter (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9403-6121)
- Hervé Lemaître (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5952-076X)
- Michael N. Smolka (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5398-5569)
- Dimitri Papadopoulos Orfanos (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1242-8990)
- Frauke Nees (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7796-8234)
- Gareth J. Barker (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5214-7421)
- Uli Bromberg (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4974-971X)
- Eric Artiges A (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4461-7646)
- Zuo Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6752-3434)
- Bernd Ittermann
- Luise Poustka
- Ulrike Schmidt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1335-1937)
- Penny Gowland
- Nilakshi Vaidya (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4600-7158)
Institutions
- University of Vermont (US)
- Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (DE)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- University of Nottingham (GB)
- Université de Bordeaux (FR)
- Inserm (FR)
- Universität Hamburg (DE)
- University of Mannheim (DE)
- King's College London (GB)
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (GB)
- Université Paris Cité (FR)
- Trinity College Dublin (IE)
- Heidelberg University (DE)
- Fudan University (CN)
- Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (FR)
- Université Paris-Saclay (FR)
- University Hospital Heidelberg (DE)
- Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine (CA)
- École Normale Supérieure - PSL (FR)
- Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (DE)
- Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (DE)
- Sorbonne Université (FR)
- Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives (FR)
- Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris (FR)
- Central Institute of Mental Health (DE)
- University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (DE)
- Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital (FR)
- CEA Paris-Saclay (FR)
- Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Technology (CN)
- Université de Montréal (CA)
- Freie Universität Berlin (DE)
- Technische Universität Dresden (DE)
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Mental Health
- Published
- 2025-01-10
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s44220-024-00354-7
- Citations
- 12
- Primary Topic
- Eating Disorders and Behaviors
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 27.68
Funders
- Fondation de l'Avenir pour la Recherche Médicale Appliquée
- South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
- UK Research and Innovation
- National Institute for Health and Care Research
- Department of Health and Social Care
- King's College London
- Science Foundation Ireland
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung
- Fondation pour la Recherche Médicale
- Fondation de France
- China Scholarship Council
- Fédération pour la Recherche sur le Cerveau
- Assistance publique-Hôpitaux de Paris
- Mission Interministérielle de Lutte Contre les Drogues et les Conduites Addictives
- National Institutes of Health
- NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre
- Medical Research Council
- Medical Research Foundation