Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious and often fatal illness. Despite decades of research, investigators have failed to adequately advance our understanding of the biological aspects of AN that could inform the development of effective interventions. Genome-wide association studies are revealing the important role of metabolic factors in AN, and studies of the gastrointestinal tract are shedding light on disruptions in enteric microbial communities and anomalies in gut morphology. In this opinion piece, we review the state of the science through the lens of the clinical presentation of illness. We project how the integration of rigorous science in genomics and microbiology, in collaboration with experienced clinicians, has the potential to markedly enhance treatment outcome via precision interventions.

神经性厌食症 (AN) 是一种严重且通常致命的疾病。尽管进行了数十年的研究，研究人员未能充分推进我们对 AN 的生物学方面的理解，而这些方面可以为有效干预措施的发展提供信息。全基因组关联研究揭示了代谢因子在 AN 中的重要作用，胃肠道研究揭示了肠道微生物群落的破坏和肠道形态的异常。在这篇评论文章中，我们通过疾病的临床表现来回顾科学的现状。我们计划与经验丰富的临床医生合作，将严谨的科学整合到基因组学和微生物学中，从而有可能通过精确干预显着提高治疗效果。