Effects of the 5-HT2C receptor agonist meta-chlorophenylpiperazine on appetite, food intake and emotional processing in healthy volunteers

• Published in: Psychopharmacology Vol. 231; no. 12; pp. 2449 - 2459
• Main Authors: Thomas, J. M., Dourish, C. T., Tomlinson, J. W., Hassan-Smith, Z., Higgs, S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.06.2014
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Affect - drug effects; Affect - physiology; Appetite - drug effects; Appetite - physiology; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Double-Blind Method; Eating - drug effects; Eating - physiology; Emotions - drug effects; Emotions - physiology; Female; Humans; Hydrocortisone - metabolism; Male; Mental Recall - drug effects; Mental Recall - physiology; Neurosciences; Original Investigation; Pharmacology/Toxicology; Piperazines - pharmacology; Psychiatry; Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT2C - metabolism; Recognition, Psychology - drug effects; Recognition, Psychology - physiology; Saliva - metabolism; Satiation - drug effects; Satiation - physiology; Serotonin 5-HT2 Receptor Agonists - pharmacology; Sex Characteristics; Young Adult; Experimental medicine; Appetite; ETB; Emotional processing; mCPP; Food intake; Memory; Anti-obesity drugs; 5-HT; UEM; Satiation quotient
• ISSN: 0033-3158; 1432-2072; 1432-2072
• DOI: 10.1007/s00213-013-3409-x

Rationale The treatment of obesity is an increasing global health priority, yet few effective drug treatments are currently available. The discovery of novel anti-obesity therapies could be assisted by the validation of experimental (translational) medicine models in healthy volunteers that assess efficacy and safety at an early stage of drug development. Objectives The aim of this study was to examine the effects of the 5-HT 2C receptor agonist meta-chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) in an experimental medicine model assessing both appetite and mood. Methods Using a between-subjects, double-blind, placebo-controlled design, 24 male and 24 female participants were randomly assigned to either placebo, 15- or 30-mg mCPP treatment groups. Lunch was eaten from a Universal Eating Monitor (UEM) that measured eating rate, and the participants completed the P1vital® Oxford Emotional Test Battery (ETB) and a series of appetite and mood ratings. Results mCPP reduced appetite and, in women, enhanced measures of satiation. The drug also enhanced memory for emotional material in the word recall and recognition memory tasks of the ETB. Conclusions The results provide new insight into the effects of mCPP on appetite, satiety and memory in humans. In addition, our data provide an illustration of the value of measuring changes in appetite and mood in healthy volunteers to determine the potential efficacy and safety of novel anti-obesity drugs.