ArticleEating and weight disorders : EWD2022
Anti-hypothalamus autoantibodies in anorexia nervosa: a possible new mechanism in neuro-physiological derangement?
Article in Eating and weight disorders : EWD, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
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14 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Eating and Mental Health Disorders.Nutrients · 2026Article
- The Possible Role of Neurofilament Light Chain as a Serum Biomarker in Anorexia Nervosa: Clinical Implications.Biomolecules · 2025Article
- Autoantibodies, Oxidative Stress, and Nutritional State in Anorexia Nervosa.Antibodies (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Detection of natural autoimmunity to ghrelin in diabetes mellitus.Frontiers in medical technology · 2024Article
- Long-Term Dynamics of Serum α-MSH and α-MSH-Binding Immunoglobulins with a Link to Gut Microbiota Composition in Patients with Anorexia Nervosa.Neuroendocrinology · 2024Article
- Circulating anti-hypothalamus antibodies in celiac patients: tissue transglutaminase friend or foe?Immunologic research · 2023Article
- The Association between Blood SIRT1 and Ghrelin, Leptin, and Antibody Anti-Hypothalamus: A Comparison in Normal Weight and Anorexia Nervosa.Journal of personalized medicine · 2023Article
- Long-Term Course of Neural Autoantibody-Associated Psychiatric Disorders: Retrospective Data from a Specifically Immunopsychiatric Outpatient Clinic.Antibodies (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Dysfunction of Inflammatory Pathways and Their Relationship with Anti-Hypothalamic Autoantibodies in Patients with Anorexia Nervosa.Nutrients · 2023Article
- The Association of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis with Appetite Regulation in Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASDs).Nutrients · 2023Article
- Malocclusion impairs cognitive behavior via AgRP signaling in adolescent mice.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2023Article
- Anorexia nervosa and autoimmune comorbidities: A bidirectional route?CNS neuroscience & therapeutics · 2022Review
- Serum kisspeptin and proopiomelanocortin in cystic fibrosis: a single study.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Immunopsychiatry - Innovative Technology to Characterize Disease Activity in Autoantibody-Associated Psychiatric Diseases.Frontiers in immunology · 2022Review
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Authors and funding
9 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeAnorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious and complex mental disorder affecting mainly young adult women. AN patients are characterized by low body weight in combination with self-induced starvation, intense fear of gaining weight, and distortion of body image. AN is a multifactorial disease, linked by recent evidence to a dysregulation of the immune system.
methodsIn this pilot study, 22 blood serums from AN patients were tested for the presence of autoantibodies against primate hypothalamic periventricular neurons by immunofluorescence and by a home-made ELISA assay. Cellular fluorescence suggests the presence of autoantibodies which are able to recognize these neurons (both to body cell and fiber levels). By means of ELISA, these autoantibodies are quantitatively evaluated. In addition, orexigenic and anorexigenic molecules were measured by ELISA. As control, 18 blood serums from healthy age matched woman were analysed.
resultsAll AN patients showed a reactivity against hypothalamic neurons both by immunofluorescence and ELISA. In addition, ghrelin, pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC), and agouti-related peptide (AGRP) were significantly higher than in control serums (p < 0.0001). In contrast, leptin was significantly lower in AN patients than controls (p < 0.0001).
conclusionsImmunoreaction and ELISA assays on AN blood serum suggest the presence of autoantibodies AN related. However, it is not easy to determine the action of these antibodies in vivo: they could interact with specific ligands expressed by hypothalamic cells preventing their physiological role, however, it is also possible that they could induce an aspecific stimulation in the target cells leading to an increased secretion of anorexigenic molecules. Further studies are needed to fully understand the involvement of the immune system in AN pathogenesis. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: V, descriptive study.
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