By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/b><\/p>\n
THURSDAY, July 11, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Anorexia nervosa could be caused by lack of a specific brain chemical, reports a research team that has developed a possible cure for the eating disorder<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mouse studies have revealed that a deficit in acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter associated with the brain’s reward system, could be linked to excessive habit formation.<\/p>\n This deficit could be behind the compulsive self-starvation seen in people with anorexia, researchers argue in the July 7 issue of the journal Nature Communications<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n The Alzheimer’s drug donepezil<\/a>, which increases acetylcholine, fully reversed the anorexia-like behavior in mice, and we believe that it could potentially offer the first mechanism-based treatment of anorexia nervosa, said senior researcher Dr. Salah El Mestikawy<\/a>, professor of psychiatry with McGill University’s Douglas Research Center in Montreal.<\/p>\n In fact, we are already seeing its effects on some patients with the disease, El Mestikawy added in a McGill news release.<\/p>\n Positive results have already been seen in 10 patients with severe anorexia who are being treated with low doses of donepezil, researchers said.<\/p>\n Three patients are in full remission from anorexia, and the other seven have shown marked improvements, results show.<\/p>\n Full-fledged clinical trials comparing donepezil against placebo in treating anorexia are set to start later this year at three major hospitals in the United States and France, researchers said.<\/p>\n However, El Mestikawy cautioned that it could take several years before a new drug targeting anorexia receives government approval and becomes available to patients.<\/p>\n Donepezil causes many gastrointestinal and muscle side effects, El Mestikawy said. Researchers are working to develop a new drug that boosts acetylcholine with fewer problems.<\/p>\n We also suspect that other compulsive pathologies such as obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD) and addictions can also be improved by donepezil, so we are actively looking for collaboration with other psychiatrist[s] around the world to explore the possibilities, El Mestikawy added.<\/p>\n More information<\/strong><\/p>\n Johns Hopkins Medicine has more on anorexia<\/a>.<\/p>\n SOURCE: McGill University, news release, July 7, 2024<\/p>\n <\/i><\/p>\n