Changes in agouti-related protein and symptom improvement in drug-naïve Chinese female patients with anorexia nervosa: a 6-month real-world longitudinal study

作者：Yanran Hu, Qing Kang, Chen Chen, Sufang Pang, Y. Chen, Yang Yang, Han Chen, Lei Guo, Jue Chen · 发表于：Journal of Eating Disorders · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.1186/s40337-026-01582-1 · 研究领域：Eating Disorders and Behaviors、Regulation of Appetite and Obesity、Neuropeptides and Animal Physiology

Agouti-related protein (AgRP) is an orexigenic neuropeptide that also plays a role in stereotypic behaviors and cognitive impairments. This study examined whether plasma AgRP levels are associated with eating disorder symptom severity and longitudinal symptom changes in anorexia nervosa (AN). This study included 53 drug-naïve patients diagnosed with AN, comprising 41 with the restricting subtype (AN-R) and 12 with the binge/purging subtype (AN-BP), along with 43 healthy controls (HC). At baseline, all participants underwent fasting blood sampling for plasma AgRP measurement and completed the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire, Version 6 (EDE-Q). During the 6-month follow-up, patients received routine clinical treatment, and 32 patients underwent repeat AgRP measurement and clinical reassessment. Baseline variables were compared using Mann-Whitney U tests for two-group comparisons or Kruskal-Wallis tests for three-group comparisons, with Bonferroni correction applied for post-hoc analyses. Changes between baseline and follow-up were assessed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Associations between AgRP levels and clinical measures were examined using Spearman correlation and linear regression analyses, with Bonferroni correction applied for multiple comparisons. The study found elevated plasma AgRP concentrations in patients with AN, with post hoc analyses indicating higher levels in AN-R compared with HC, while no significant differences were observed between AN-R and...