Eating disorders: From bench to bedside and back

The central nervous system and viscera constitute a functionalensemble, the gut–brain axis, that allows bidirectional infor-mation flow that contributes to the control of feeding behaviorbased not only on the homeostatic, but also on the hedonicaspects of food intake. The prevalence of eating disorders,such as anorexia nervosa, binge eating and obesity, poses anenormous clinical burden, and involves an ever-growingpercentage of the population worldwide. Clinical and preclin-ical research is constantly adding new information to the fieldand orienting further studies with the aim of providing afoundation for developing more specific and effective treat-ment approaches to pathological conditions. A recent sympo-sium at the XVI Congress of the Societa Italiana diNeuroscienze (SINS, 2015) ‘Eating disorders: from bench tobedside and back’ brought together basic scientists andclinicians with the objective of presenting novel perspectivesin the neurobiology of eating disorders. Clinical studiespresented by V. Ricca illustrated some genetic aspects ofthe psychopathology of anorexia nervosa. Preclinical studiesaddressed different issues ranging from the description ofanimal models that mimic human pathologies such asanorexia nervosa, diet-induced obesity, and binge eatingdisorders (T. Lutz), to novel interactions between peripheralsignals and central circuits that govern food intake, mood andstress (A. Romano and G. Provensi). The gut–brain axis hasreceived increasing attention in the recent years as preclinicalstudies are demonstrating that the brain and visceral organssuch as the liver and guts, but also the microbiota areconstantly engaged in processes of reciprocal communication,with unexpected physiological and pathological implications.Eating is controlled by a plethora of factors; genetic predis-position, early life adverse conditions, peripheral gastrointesti-nal hormones that act directly or indirectly on the centralnervous system, all are receiving attention as they presumablycontribute to the development of eating disorders.Keywords: animal models of eating disorders, centralneurotransmitter systems, food consumption, gut–brain axis,obesity.