$3.7 million grant awarded to assess the impact of testosterone on binge eating

A team of clinical scientists from the Michigan State University Department of Psychology and Texas A&M University’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences has been awarded a $3.7 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to assess the impact of testosterone on binge eating risk in women.

“We are incredibly grateful for this funding and the opportunity to pursue rigorous science in an important but understudied area of women’s health,” said Kristen Culbert, a co-lead of this study and research specialist in MSU’s psychology department. “Binge eating affects approximately 1 in 6 women and is associated with significant medical complications, yet we still have major gaps in our understanding of the biological factors that contribute to risk.”

This study, also co-led by MSU Research Foundation Distinguished Professor Kelly Klump and TAMU Associate Professor Shaunna Clark, is the first to examine testosterone effects on binge eating risk in women.

Prior research from the Klump lab has shown that ovarian hormones, specifically estrogen and progesterone, influence binge eating risk in women. Testosterone is another key hormone with widespread effects on the brain and behavior yet, remarkably, little is known about its role in binge eating and related mental health outcomes in women.

How the study will work

This multiyear study will examine testosterone both on its own and in combination with estradiol and progesterone, allowing the researchers to develop a more comprehensive understanding of how gonadal hormones may work together to influence binge eating risk.

“Our goal is to understand not only whether testosterone influences binge eating risk in women, but how and why some women may be more vulnerable to its effects than others. We do not expect testosterone to impact every woman in the study in the same way. It’s likely that the risk is targeted to those with other risk factors,” said Klump.

This study will build upon existing data available through the Michigan State University Twin Registry. By combining new hormone measures with longitudinal data from the Twin Registry, the researchers are able to investigate the interplay among hormones, genetics and binge eating in a large sample of women. Recreating a dataset of this scope and depth, without the Twin Registry, would require years of intensive data collection and substantial resources.

Given the significant physical and mental health consequences associated with binge eating, this research will address a critical public health need.

“Understanding the factors that contribute to the development and persistence of binge eating is essential for improving its prevention and treatment,” said Culbert. “We hope this project will provide a more complete picture of the biological processes that contribute to risk and, ultimately, lay the groundwork for more individualized approaches to prevention and treatment.”