Are Signals Regulating Energy Homeostasis Related to Neuropsychological and Clinical Features of Gambling Disorder? A Case–Control Study

Etxandi, Mikel; Baenas, Isabel; Mora-Maltas, Bernat; Granero, Roser; Fernández-Aranda, Fernando; Tovar, Sulay; Solé-Morata, Neus; Lucas, Ignacio; Casado, Sabela; Gómez-Peña, Mónica; Moragas, Laura; Pino-Gutiérrez, Amparo del; Codina, Ester; Valenciano-Mendoza, Eduardo; Potenza, Marc N.; Diéguez, Carlos; Jiménez-Murcia, Susana

doi:10.3390/nu14235084

Open AccessArticle

Are Signals Regulating Energy Homeostasis Related to Neuropsychological and Clinical Features of Gambling Disorder? A Case–Control Study

by

Mikel Etxandi

^1,2,†,

Isabel Baenas

^1,3,4,†,

Bernat Mora-Maltas

^1,4,

Roser Granero

^3,4,5

,

Fernando Fernández-Aranda

^1,3,4,6

,

Sulay Tovar

^3,7

,

Neus Solé-Morata

^1,4

,

Ignacio Lucas

^1,4

,

Sabela Casado

^3,7,

Mónica Gómez-Peña

^1,4,

Laura Moragas

^1,4,

Amparo del Pino-Gutiérrez

^3,4,8

,

Ester Codina

¹,

Eduardo Valenciano-Mendoza

¹,

Marc N. Potenza

^{9,10,11,12,13}

,

Carlos Diéguez

^3,7 and

Susana Jiménez-Murcia

^1,3,4,6,*

¹

Department of Psychiatry, Bellvitge University Hospital-Bellvitge Institute for Biomedical Research (IDIBELL), 08907 Barcelona, Spain

²

Department of Psychiatry, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, IGTP Campus Can Ruti, 08916 Badalona, Spain

³

Ciber Fisiopatología Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBERObn), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain

⁴

Psychoneurobiology of Eating and Addictive Behaviors Group, Neurosciences Programme, Bellvitge Institute for Biomedical Research (IDIBELL), 08908 Barcelona, Spain

⁵

Department of Psychobiology and Methodology, Autonomous University of Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona, Spain

⁶

Department of Clinical Sciences, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Barcelona, 08907 Barcelona, Spain

⁷

Department of Physiology, CIMUS, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria, University of Santiago de Compostela, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain

⁸

Department of Public Health, Mental Health and Perinatal Nursing, School of Nursing, University of Barcelona, 08907 Barcelona, Spain

⁹

Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA

¹⁰

Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA

¹¹

Connecticut Mental Health Center, New Haven, CT 06519, USA

¹²

Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling, Wethersfield, CT 06106, USA

¹³

Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA

Show full affiliation list

Hide full affiliation list

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Nutrients 2022, 14(23), 5084; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14235084

Submission received: 19 October 2022 / Revised: 4 November 2022 / Accepted: 24 November 2022 / Published: 29 November 2022

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Eating Disorders and Addictive Behaviors: Implications for Human Health)

Download

Browse Figures

Review Reports Versions Notes

Abstract

Gambling disorder (GD) is a modestly prevalent and severe condition for which neurobiology is not yet fully understood. Although alterations in signals involved in energy homeostasis have been studied in substance use disorders, they have yet to be examined in detail in GD. The aims of the present study were to compare different endocrine and neuropsychological factors between individuals with GD and healthy controls (HC) and to explore endocrine interactions with neuropsychological and clinical variables. A case–control design was performed in 297 individuals with GD and 41 individuals without (healthy controls; HCs), assessed through a semi-structured clinical interview and a psychometric battery. For the evaluation of endocrine and anthropometric variables, 38 HCs were added to the 41 HCs initially evaluated. Individuals with GD presented higher fasting plasma ghrelin (p < 0.001) and lower LEAP2 and adiponectin concentrations (p < 0.001) than HCs, after adjusting for body mass index (BMI). The GD group reported higher cognitive impairment regarding cognitive flexibility and decision-making strategies, a worse psychological state, higher impulsivity levels, and a more dysfunctional personality profile. Despite failing to find significant associations between endocrine factors and either neuropsychological or clinical aspects in the GD group, some impaired cognitive dimensions (i.e., WAIS Vocabulary test and WCST Perseverative errors) and lower LEAP2 concentrations statistically predicted GD presence. The findings from the present study suggest that distinctive neuropsychological and endocrine dysfunctions may operate in individuals with GD and predict GD presence. Further exploration of endophenotypic vulnerability pathways in GD appear warranted, especially with respect to etiological and therapeutic potentials.

Keywords: gambling disorder; addictive behavior; impulsive–compulsive behavior; gut hormones; adipocytokines; neuropsychology

Graphical Abstract

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Etxandi, M.; Baenas, I.; Mora-Maltas, B.; Granero, R.; Fernández-Aranda, F.; Tovar, S.; Solé-Morata, N.; Lucas, I.; Casado, S.; Gómez-Peña, M.; et al. Are Signals Regulating Energy Homeostasis Related to Neuropsychological and Clinical Features of Gambling Disorder? A Case–Control Study. Nutrients 2022, 14, 5084. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14235084

AMA Style

Etxandi M, Baenas I, Mora-Maltas B, Granero R, Fernández-Aranda F, Tovar S, Solé-Morata N, Lucas I, Casado S, Gómez-Peña M, et al. Are Signals Regulating Energy Homeostasis Related to Neuropsychological and Clinical Features of Gambling Disorder? A Case–Control Study. Nutrients. 2022; 14(23):5084. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14235084

Chicago/Turabian Style

Etxandi, Mikel, Isabel Baenas, Bernat Mora-Maltas, Roser Granero, Fernando Fernández-Aranda, Sulay Tovar, Neus Solé-Morata, Ignacio Lucas, Sabela Casado, Mónica Gómez-Peña, and et al. 2022. "Are Signals Regulating Energy Homeostasis Related to Neuropsychological and Clinical Features of Gambling Disorder? A Case–Control Study" Nutrients 14, no. 23: 5084. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14235084

APA Style

Etxandi, M., Baenas, I., Mora-Maltas, B., Granero, R., Fernández-Aranda, F., Tovar, S., Solé-Morata, N., Lucas, I., Casado, S., Gómez-Peña, M., Moragas, L., Pino-Gutiérrez, A. d., Codina, E., Valenciano-Mendoza, E., Potenza, M. N., Diéguez, C., & Jiménez-Murcia, S. (2022). Are Signals Regulating Energy Homeostasis Related to Neuropsychological and Clinical Features of Gambling Disorder? A Case–Control Study. Nutrients, 14(23), 5084. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14235084

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

Article Menu

Are Signals Regulating Energy Homeostasis Related to Neuropsychological and Clinical Features of Gambling Disorder? A Case–Control Study

Abstract

Share and Cite

Article Metrics

Article Access Statistics

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI