123I-ADAM SPECT imaging of serotonin transporter binding in patients with Night Eating Syndrome: A preliminary report

Lundgren, Jennifer D.; Newberg, Andrew B.; Allison, Kelly C.; Wintering, Nancy A.; Ploessl, Karl; Stunkard, Albert J.

doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2007.07.006

« Previous Next »Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
Volume 162, Issue 3 , Pages 214-220, 15 April 2008

¹²³I-ADAM SPECT imaging of serotonin transporter binding in patients with Night Eating Syndrome: A preliminary report

Jennifer D. Lundgren
- Center for Weight and Eating Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Currently at the Department of Psychology, University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, USA.
Andrew B. Newberg
- Department of Radiology, Division of Nuclear Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Kelly C. Allison
- Center for Weight and Eating Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Nancy A. Wintering
- Department of Radiology, Division of Nuclear Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Karl Ploessl
- Department of Radiology, Division of Nuclear Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Albert J. Stunkard
- Center for Weight and Eating Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Corresponding author: 3535 Market Street, Ste. 3025, Philadelphia, PA 19104-3309, USA. Tel.: +1 215 898 7413; fax: +1 215 898 2878.

Received 25 October 2006; received in revised form 3 July 2007; accepted 16 July 2007.

Abstract

Night eating syndrome (NES) represents a delay in the circadian pattern of food intake, manifested by evening hyperphagia and/or nocturnal awakenings accompanied by ingestions of food. A neurobiological marker of NES has been implicated with the recently discovered therapeutic response to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) sertraline. This pilot SPECT (single photon emission computed tomography) study compared the serotonin transporter (SERT) uptake ratios of night eaters with those of healthy controls. Six night eaters underwent SPECT imaging using the radiopharmaceutical ¹²³I-ADAM. Uptake, compared with that of the cerebellum, was obtained for the midbrain, basal ganglia, and temporal lobes; uptake ratios in night eaters were compared with those of six healthy controls. Night eaters had significantly greater SERT uptake ratios in the midbrain than healthy controls. These findings, in conjunction with the therapeutic response of NES to sertraline, indicate that the serotonin system is involved in the pathophysiology of NES.

Keywords: Serotonin transport, Midbrain, Circadian, Eating behavior