Steinhäuser Jonas L, Wronski Marie-Louis, Keeler Johanna L, Ehrlich Stefan, King Joseph A
Translational Developmental Neuroscience Section, Division of Psychological and Social Medicine and Developmental Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
Section of Eating Disorders, Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
J Eat Disord. 2022 Sep 14;10(1):141. doi: 10.1186/s40337-022-00662-2.
Despite intensified research efforts into the underlying (neuro-)biology of eating disorders (EDs), only few reliable biomarkers of diagnostic or prognostic value have been identified to date. One promising line of research has focused on the role of peripheral blood-based biomarkers as potential contributors to the complex pathophysiology of EDs. One such candidate marker is brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a neurotrophin broadly implicated in neuronal plasticity and food-intake regulation. A growing number of studies have targeted BDNF in EDs; culminating in several recent well-powered and controlled case-control studies, comprehensive meta-analyses, and review articles. In the current correspondence, we aim to put the recent meta-analysis of Shobeiri et al. (J Eat Disord 10(1):105, 2022) into perspective and argue that the finding suggestive of lower BDNF concentrations across individuals with EDs in comparison to healthy controls needs to be interpreted with caution. While this finding is compatible with those from earlier meta-analyses, it may be biased due to several reasons; most notably by the applied study selection procedures, insufficient consideration of influential determinants of BDNF concentrations, and generalization of results across the ED spectrum without sufficient statistical power. Further controlled and comprehensive studies are necessary to establish BDNF as a clinically informative biomarker of EDs.
尽管对饮食失调（EDs）的潜在（神经）生物学进行了强化研究，但迄今为止，仅发现了少数具有诊断或预后价值的可靠生物标志物。一条有前景的研究方向聚焦于外周血生物标志物在EDs复杂病理生理学中的潜在作用。脑源性神经营养因子（BDNF）就是这样一种候选标志物，它是一种广泛参与神经元可塑性和食物摄入调节的神经营养蛋白。越来越多的研究将目标对准了EDs中的BDNF；最近有几项样本量充足且对照严格的病例对照研究、全面的荟萃分析以及综述文章达到了研究高潮。在本通信中，我们旨在对Shobeiri等人（《饮食失调杂志》10(1):105, 2022）最近的荟萃分析进行审视，并认为与健康对照相比，EDs患者BDNF浓度较低这一发现需要谨慎解读。虽然这一发现与早期荟萃分析的结果一致，但可能因多种原因存在偏差；最显著的原因是所采用的研究选择程序、对BDNF浓度影响因素的考虑不足以及在没有足够统计效力的情况下将结果推广到整个EDs谱系。需要进一步进行对照全面的研究，以确立BDNF作为EDs具有临床参考价值的生物标志物地位。
