PP457 - STATE-DEPENDENT DISSOCIATIONS OF CRAVING FROM APPETITE, FOOD REWARD, AND RELATED BIOMARKERS IN METHAMPHETAMINE USE DISORDER

PP457

STATE-DEPENDENT DISSOCIATIONS OF CRAVING FROM APPETITE, FOOD REWARD, AND RELATED BIOMARKERS IN METHAMPHETAMINE USE DISORDER

S. Kong¹, Y. Zhou^1,*

¹School of Physical Education, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou, China

Rationale: Addiction involves suppressed appetite and impaired food reward due to reward hijacking via shared neuroendocrine pathways, yet it remains unclear whether craving is more closely associated with appetite or food reward, and with homeostatic or reward-related biomarkers. Clarifying these distinctions may improve mechanistic understanding and assessment of addiction.

Methods: Thirty-three women with methamphetamine (MA) use disorder (age 31.3 ± 7.1 years) participated in a within-subject crossover study under four conditions: normal hunger, overnight fasting, post-chocolate, and post-exercise. MA craving, appetite, and food reward were assessed. Fasting blood samples were collected for ghrelin, leptin, oleoylethanolamide (OEA), anandamide (AEA), 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG), and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Craving differences across conditions were tested by ANOVA; mixed models examined associations of craving with appetite and food reward across conditions; fasting biomarkers were then examined in relation to craving within each condition and in covariate-adjusted prediction models.

Results: MA craving showed a state-dependent effect, highest under normal hunger and lowest after exercise (p < 0.001). High-fat sweet food reward was positively associated with craving across conditions, whereas other food categories showed inverse associations (p < 0.05). Both BDNF and OEA were associated with craving under the normal hunger (p < 0.05), but only OEA remained significant after adjustment for MA use history (ΔR² = 0.133).

Conclusion: MA craving is dissociably associated with food reward rather than appetite across states, with component- and category-specific patterns. Reward-related biomarkers were also associated with craving, with OEA emerging as an independent predictor. These findings identify food reward and OEA as targets for craving assessment and intervention.

Disclosure of Interest: None declared