Study of Food Aversion in Patients With Anorexia Nervosa

Solving EPHX2 and Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Interactions in Anorexia Nervosa

Status

Recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT03100656

Enrollment

300

Registered

2017-04-04

Start date

2016-11-10

Completion date

2027-12-31

Last updated

2026-03-31

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Anorexia Nervosa

Keywords

psychopathology, treatment, epoxide hydrolases, polyunsaturated fatty acids, eicosanoids

Brief summary

This study uses a meal-challenge protocol to assess if patients with anorexia nervosa show a differential metabolism in response to food in comparison to healthy controls. This study determines how heritable and biochemical factors influence food metabolism in anorexia nervosa in order to develop more effective treatment strategies.

Detailed description

Anorexia nervosa is a brain-based disorder that often leads to serious health consequences including death. The EPHX2 gene has been identified as a susceptibility gene for anorexia nervosa. This study utilizes a multi-omics biomarker system approach to investigate how genetic factors interact with dietary factors to influence food aversion, psychopathology, and clinical outcome in patients with anorexia nervosa.

Interventions

OTHERA breakfast sandwich

A meat-based breakfast sandwich

Study design

Allocation

NON_RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Primary purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Masking

NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

FEMALE

Age

18 Years to 55 Years

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

* Ill AN subjects will meet current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM V) diagnosis of AN, body mass index (BMI) between 11 kg/m² and 17.5 kg/m², or BMI \> 17.5 kg/m² with active eating disorder symptoms. * Recovered AN must meet the following criteria at time of study entry: 1) Current or past DSM V diagnosis of AN; 2) BMI between 18.5 kg/m2 and 30 kg/m2; 3) Having maintained a BMI of \>18.5 for at least one year. * Control must be healthy adolescent or woman negative on our screen for AN, other Axis I psychiatric illnesses, and having maintained a BMI of between 18.5-30 kg/m² since the age of 18.

Exclusion criteria

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Change of metabolism biomarker	2 hours	Percentage change of metabolism marker
Food aversion/anxiety	2 hours	Percentage change of food aversion/anxiety score

Secondary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Weight	6 and 12 months	Change in body weight, kg
Psychopathology	6 and 12 months	Percentage change in eating disorder psychopathology score

Countries

Canada, United States

Contacts

CONTACTPei-an (Betty) Shih, MPM, PhD

eatingdisorderresearch@ucsd.edu(858) 534-0828

CONTACTNhien Nguyen, MS

n7nguyen@ucsd.edu

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORPei-an (Betty) Shih, MPM, PhD

University of California, San Diego

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Apr 1, 2026