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Review
. 2024 Feb 29:35:100333.
doi: 10.1016/j.jcte.2024.100333. eCollection 2024 Mar.

GLP-1 receptor agonists: A novel pharmacotherapy for binge eating (Binge eating disorder and bulimia nervosa)? A systematic review

Laurence Aoun  1 , Shaza Almardini  1 , Fares Saliba  1 , Fadi Haddadin  1 , Omar Mourad  1 , Jennifer Jdaidani  1 , Zeina Morcos  1 , Ibrahim Al Saidi  1 , Elie Bou Sanayeh  1 , Saliba Saliba  2 , Michel Almardini  3 , Julie Zaidan  4
Affiliations
Review

GLP-1 receptor agonists: A novel pharmacotherapy for binge eating (Binge eating disorder and bulimia nervosa)? A systematic review

Laurence Aoun et al. J Clin Transl Endocrinol. .

Abstract

Objective: Systematically review evidence on using GLP-1RAs for reducing BEB in BED and BN.

Methods: Comprehensive literature search (PubMed and Google Scholar) conducted for studies evaluating GLP-1Ras for BEB. Extracted data on study characteristics, efficacy, and safety.

Results: Studies show that GLP-1RAs (liraglutide and dulaglutide) reduce BE frequency and comorbidities in addition to favorable psychiatric side effect profile compared to current options. However, large-scale, blinded placebo-controlled trials are lacking.

Conclusion: Early findings suggest promising effects of GLP-1RAs on BEB. However, rigorous clinical trials are needed to firmly establish efficacy, dosing, safety, and comparative effectiveness before considering GLP-1RAs a viable novel approach.

Keywords: BED; Binge Eating Disorder; Bulimia nervosa; Dulaglutide; Eating Disorders; Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist; Liraglutide; Semaglutide.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig. A
Fig. A
This schematic illustrates the action of GLP-1 on CNS AgRP: Agouti-related peptide, CART: cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript, GLP-1RA: glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist, NPY: neuropeptide Y, POMC: proopiomelanocortin.
Fig. B
Fig. B
This schematic illustrates the interaction between POMC neurons, serotonin (5-HT), and melanocortin 4 receptors (MC4R) in the regulation of appetite. Activation of POMC neurons by GLP-1 and serotonin, particularly through the 5-HT2C receptor, leads to the release of α-MSH, an endogenous agonist for MC4R. When α-MSH binds to MC4R neurons in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus, it induces a signaling cascade that ultimately results in decreased appetite. This pathway is a critical component of the neuroendocrine regulation of energy homeostasis, highlighting the complex interplay between neurotransmitters and hormonal signals in the control of food intake.
Fig. C
Fig. C
Adapted from dar, s. et al. (2015). 'the role of glp-1 receptor agonists as weight loss agents in patients with and without type 2 diabetes.' practical diabetes, 32(8), 297–300. copyright © 2015 john wiley & sons . The above graph shows the changes in weight in kg among different study groups.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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