FOOD-INTAKE IN PRADER-WILLI-SYNDROME AND CONTROLS WITH OBESITY AFTER ADMINISTRATION OF A BENZODIAZEPINE RECEPTOR AGONIST

Benzodiazepine receptor (BZR) agonists, used extensively for their anx iolytic effects, have been shown to increase food intake in many mamma lian species, Little information, however, is available on the effects of BZR agonists on feeding behaviors of humans, Food intake was evalu ated in a 60-minute free-feeding standardized test after the acute adm inistration of the BZR agonist chlordiazepoxide (CDP, Librium; 5 mg or 20 mg) or placebo, Subjects were 12 individuals with the Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), a disorder characterized by extreme hyperphagia and m orbid obesity, and 11 controls with obesity, PWS subjects showed the c haracteristic hyperghagia associated with the appetite disorder, consu ming more than six: times as many sandwiches as controls with obesity, Results revealed no significant effect of either dose of CDP on the f ood intake of either group, Serum assays revealed that dose-dependent, clinically effective levels of CDP and active metabolites were achiev ed, These results suggest that acute administration of the BZR agonist CDP, at the therapeutic levels used, may not increase food intake in populations with obesity, However, the chronic effects of CDP on appet ite in human populations still need to be explored.