Eating disorders dopamine

The neurobiological knowledge, however, is far less developed. As all motivated behavior is accompanied by release of dopamine in the mesolimbic structures, we would expect this also to occur in these cases. The assumption is confirmed by preliminary research, but the significance of the findings is far from clear. In addition, some types of eating disorder seem to involve serotonergic disturbances. Little is known about neuroadaptive mechanisms. Since these behaviors do not involve a chemical substance introduced into the nervous system, there must obviously be some paradigmatic differences. Nevertheless, a shared mechanism related to disturbances in the dopamine-mediated motivational areas is likely, whereas the contributory mechanisms in all probability are different. 

Bupropion is another second-line agent, particularly for patients who are wary of the SSRIs negative impact on sexual dysfunction. Because it appears to relieve depression through a completely different mechanism than SSRIs, enhancing norepinephrine or dopamine, it is often administered to patients who fail SSRIs or exhibit a partial response. The most common side effects encountered with bupropion are insomnia, jitteriness, and nausea. Bupropion is contraindicated in patients with a history of seizures or eating disorders. 

Neurotransmitters are chemicals that carry messages, or signals, from a nerve cell to a target cell, which may be another nerve cell or a muscle cell. They may be inhibitory or excitatory and all are nitrogen-containing compounds. The catecholamines include dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine. Too little dopamine results in Rarkinson s disease. Too much is associated with schizophrenia. Dopamine is also associated with addictive behavior. A deficiency of serotonin is associated with depression and eating disorders. Serotonin is involved in pain perception, regulation of body temperature, and sleep. Histamine contributes to al-... 

Levitan, R. D., M. Masellis, V. S. Basile, R. W. Lam, A. S. Kaplan, C. Davis, et al. (2004). The dopamine-4 receptor gene associated with binge eating and weight gain in women with seasonal affective disorder An evolutionary perspective. Biol Psychiatry 56(9) 665-9. 

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