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. 2021 May;54(5):785-793.
doi: 10.1002/eat.23481. Epub 2021 Feb 28.

One size does not fit all. Genomics differentiates among anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder

Christopher Hübel  1   2   3   4 , Mohamed Abdulkadir  5   6 , Moritz Herle  7 , Ruth J F Loos  8 , Gerome Breen  1   2 , Cynthia M Bulik  4   9   10 , Nadia Micali  5   6   11
Affiliations

One size does not fit all. Genomics differentiates among anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder

Christopher Hübel et al. Int J Eat Disord. 2021 May.

Abstract

Objective: Genome-wide association studies have identified multiple genomic regions associated with anorexia nervosa. No genome-wide studies of other eating disorders, such as bulimia nervosa and binge-eating disorder, have been performed, despite their substantial heritability. Exploratively, we aimed to identify traits that are genetically associated with binge-type eating disorders.

Method: We calculated genome-wide polygenic scores for 269 trait and disease outcomes using PRSice v2.2 and their association with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge-eating disorder in up to 640 cases and 17,050 controls from the UK Biobank. Significant associations were tested for replication in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (up to 217 cases and 3,018 controls).

Results: Individuals with binge-type eating disorders had higher polygenic scores than controls for other psychiatric disorders, including depression, schizophrenia, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and higher polygenic scores for body mass index.

Discussion: Our findings replicate some of the known comorbidities of eating disorders on a genomic level and motivate a deeper investigation of shared and unique genomic factors across the three primary eating disorders.

Keywords: Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC); UK Biobank; binge-eating disorder; polygenic scores.

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Conflict of interest statement

Dr. Breen has received grant funding from and served as a consultant to Eli Lilly, has received honoraria from Illumina, and has served on advisory boards for Otsuka. Dr. Bulik is a grant recipient from and has served on advisory boards for Shire and is a consultant for Idorsia. She receives royalties from Pearson. She is a grant recipient from Lundbeckfonden. All other authors have indicated they have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Polygenic scores associated with eating disorders in the UK Biobank. (a) Psychiatric and behavioral, (b) metabolic, and (c) anthropometric polygenic scores and their association estimates with self‐reported or hospital‐diagnosed eating disorders in the UK Biobank sample (n = 17,050). Filled dots are statistically significant after adjustment for multiple testing through the false discovery approach. Dots represent odds ratios and error bars index 95% confidence intervals obtained via logistic regression and 10,000 permutations to obtain empirical p values. ADHD, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; BMI, body mass index; HDL cholesterol, high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol; PTSD, posttraumatic stress disorder [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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