Evidence for ERP biomarkers of eating disorder symptoms in women

Growing evidence suggests that the brain processes bodies distinctively from other stimuli, but little research has addressed whether visual body perception is modulated by the observer's thoughts and feelings about their own body. The present study thus investigated the relationship between body image and electrophysiological signatures of body perception, with the aim of identifying potential biomarkers of body image disturbances. Occipito-parietal (P1 and N1) and fronto-central (VPP) processing of body and non-body stimuli were assessed in 29 weight-restored eating disordered (ED) women and compared to 27 healthy controls. Rapid early visual processing was seen in the ED group, as the entire P1-N1 complex unfolded significantly earlier compared to controls. ED women also showed a gender-sensitive response to other women's bodies over N1 and VPP components. Such gender-sensitivity was not evident in controls. Moreover, ERP effects correlated with scores on the Eating Disorder Inventory-II (EDI-2), indicating a close link between the observers' ED symptomatology, including body image, and the visual analysis of human bodies during very early stages of cortical processing. The temporal dynamics of visual body perception may therefore serve as potential neural markers for the identification of ED symptomatology in 'at risk' populations.