The effects of the dopamine D? receptor antagonist GSK598809 on attentional bias to palatable food cues in overweight and obese subjects

Nathan, P.J., O'Neill, B., Mogg, K., Bradley, B.P., Beaver, J., Bani, B., Merlo-Pich, E., Fletcher, P.V., Swirski, B., Koch, A., Dodds, C.M. and Bullmore, E.T. (2012) The effects of the dopamine D? receptor antagonist GSK598809 on attentional bias to palatable food cues in overweight and obese subjects. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, 15 (2), 149-161. (doi:10.1017/S1461145711001052).

Abstract

The mesolimbic dopamine system plays a critical role in the reinforcing effects of rewards. Evidence from pre-clinical studies suggests that D3 receptor antagonists may attenuate the motivational impact of rewarding cues. In this study we examined the acute effects of the D3 receptor antagonist GSK598809 on attentional bias to rewarding food cues in overweight to obese individuals (n=26; BMI mean = 32.7 ??3.7; range 27-40kg/m2) who reported binge andr emotional eating. We also determined whether individual differences in restrained eating style modulated the effects of GSK598809 on attentional bias. The study utilised a randomised, double-blind placebo-controlled, cross-over design with each participant tested following acute administration of placebo and GSK598809 (175mg). Attentional bias was assessed by the visual probe task and modified Stroop task using food-related words. Overall GSK598809 had no effects on attentional bias in either the visual probe or food-Stroop tasks. However, the effect of GSK598809 on both visual probe and food-Stroop attentional bias scores was inversely correlated with a measure of eating restraint allowing the identification of two subpopulations, low and high restrained eaters. Low restrained eaters had a significant attentional bias towards food cues in both tasks under placebo, and this was attenuated by GSK598809. In contrast, high restrained eaters showed no attentional bias to food cues following either placebo or GSK598809. These findings suggest that excessive attentional bias to food cues generated by individual differences in eating traits can be modulated by D3 receptor antagonists, warranting further investigation with measures of eating behaviour and weight loss.

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Contributors

Author: B.P. Bradley

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