A virtual issue highlighting animal studies of eating disorders as valuable tools for examining neurobiological underpinnings and treatment of eating disorders

Abstract

While studies in humans suggest a role for psychosocial factors as well as biological and genetic processes in the development of eating disorders, the specific etiologic mechanisms remain largely unknown. In this virtual issue, we present a collection of 14 archived articles from the International Journal of Eating Disorders to highlight the utility of animal studies of eating disorders to advance our understanding of eating disorder etiology. Selected articles establish animal studies as valid tools to study disordered eating behavior, offer insight into potential neurobiological mechanisms, and highlight novel targets for future pharmacological treatments. Clinical implications of each article's findings are included to demonstrate the translational value of animal studies for the eating disorders field. We hope that the exciting concepts and findings in this issue inspire future animal studies of eating disorders.

Enhancing the Connection Between Basic and Applied Research in Eating Disorders: Steps Toward More Effective Translation

“…In turn, we hoped to build capacity for a transactional relationship between the "bench and bedside" research, which has been applied in other fields (e.g., substance use; Venniro et al 2020), and focus on work that falls in and moves between T0 and T1 in the translational research spectrum. While previous endeavors have highlighted translational research (see IJED special collection on animal studies in eating disorders (Fowler and Klump 2020) and a review on neurobiological eating disorder research (Frank, Shott, and DeGuzman 2019)), we aimed to solicit the most recent translational discoveries in the field while also reaching authors that have not previously published in IJED, ultimately expanding IJED's authorship and readership. We solicited articles through widespread targeted emails sent directly to colleagues within and outside of the eating and appetite fields whose research has addressed translational topics, and announcements on listservs and at conferences for professional organizations related to eating, appetite, neurobiology, pharmacology, and physiology.…”