Verspohl Valerie, van Egmond Miranda, Kneisel Lilly, Reese Friederike, Thelen Anna C, Korten Nele, Neumann Maren, Schaack Lena, Voelz Clara, Käver Larissa, Herpertz-Dahlmann Beate, Beyer Cordian, Seitz Jochen, Trinh Stefanie
Institute of Neuroanatomy, RWTH Aachen University, Wendlingweg 2, 52074, Aachen, Germany.
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, RWTH Aachen University, Neuenhofer Weg 21, 52074, Aachen, Germany.
Sci Rep. 2025 Apr 23;15(1):14132. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-98237-z.
Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a severe psychiatric disease with a largely unknown pathophysiology. AN leads to reduced brain volume and a disbalance of the gut microbiome suggesting the involvement of the gut-brain-axis. Also, in the activity-based anorexia (ABA) animal model mimicking AN brain volume loss is observed. This study investigated the impact of chronic starvation on brain cell populations and evaluated the potential protective effects of omega-3 fatty acids (FA) and probiotics in rats. We used a chronic ABA model and provided daily oral supplementation of omega-3 FA and probiotics. Immunohistochemistry and qPCR were used to analyze GFAP-positive astrocytes, IBA1-positive microglia, OLIG1/2-positive oligodendrocytes, MAP2-positive neurons and Ki-67-positive proliferating cells in the cerebral cortex and corpus callosum. We found a significant reduction of astrocytes and microglia in all ABA groups, likely due to reduced proliferating cells. Reduced running wheel activity and reduced amount of food needed to sustain body weight were observed in animals with supplementation with omega-3 FA and probiotics but we did not observe alterations in brain cells that could be attributed to these supplementations. Our results indicate that glial cell depletion potentially underlies the diminished brain volume found in ABA rats. Omega-3 FA and probiotics show potential for reducing AN-related symptoms and merit further study as a therapeutic approach.
神经性厌食症（AN）是一种严重的精神疾病，其病理生理学在很大程度上尚不明确。AN会导致脑容量减少以及肠道微生物群失衡，这表明肠道-脑轴参与其中。此外，在模拟AN的基于活动的厌食症（ABA）动物模型中也观察到了脑容量损失。本研究调查了慢性饥饿对脑细胞群体的影响，并评估了ω-3脂肪酸（FA）和益生菌对大鼠的潜在保护作用。我们使用了慢性ABA模型，并每日口服补充ω-3 FA和益生菌。采用免疫组织化学和qPCR分析大脑皮层和胼胝体中GFAP阳性星形胶质细胞、IBA1阳性小胶质细胞、OLIG1/2阳性少突胶质细胞、MAP2阳性神经元和Ki-67阳性增殖细胞。我们发现所有ABA组中的星形胶质细胞和小胶质细胞均显著减少，这可能是由于增殖细胞减少所致。在补充了ω-3 FA和益生菌的动物中观察到转轮活动减少以及维持体重所需食物量减少，但我们未观察到可归因于这些补充剂的脑细胞变化。我们的结果表明，胶质细胞耗竭可能是ABA大鼠脑容量减小的潜在原因。ω-3 FA和益生菌显示出减轻AN相关症状的潜力，作为一种治疗方法值得进一步研究。
