Introduction: Approximately 26% of individuals between 18 and 24 years old are overweight or obese, and the number of persons with excessive body mass index (BMI) is growing. Obesity increases the risk of metabolic disruptions, which is well connected with mental health problems. Stressful situations, including entering adulthood and starting university education, affect food choices negatively. The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between psychological stress and body composition in the student population. Materials and methods: The study group consisted of 80 students (76% of women and 24% of men) between 19 and 28 years old from universities in Lublin. To determine anthropometric measurement (fat-free mass (FFM), fat mass (FM), total body water (TBW), intracellular (ICF) and extracellular (ECF) fluids), bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) method was applied. The severity of stress symptoms was measured using Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). Results: When it comes to 41.25% of participants, they used relaxation techniques, mainly meditation, yoga practice and walking. Most students had optimal body weight. While 60% of individuals had high stress levels. The perceived stress was not related to using the relaxation methods. Individuals with the high stress severity were characterized by lower: TBW, ECF and ICF expressed in liters, and lower FFM represented in kilograms. The inverse relationship between the severity of stress and the aforementioned parameters was also detected (p<0.05). Conclusions: Implementing appropriate healt h education programs to prevent negat ive changes in ant hropometric measurements, psychological stress, and their health-related consequences in the student population should be considered.

Introduction: Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a mental disorder with the highest death rate. The characteristic feature of AN is endocrine dysregulations, including changes in adipose-tissue secreted hormones, especially adipokines. The most widely studied of them is leptin whose role in the pathophysiology and prognosis of AN is confirmed in more and more studies. The aim of the study was to summarize the role of endocrine disruptions with particular emphasis on leptin in the pathophysiology of AN. Material and methods: For the literature review, the electronic databases PubMed, Cochrane and Google Scholar search were used with the following keywords: eating disorders, adipokines, leptin, metreleptin, satiety, hunger, anorexia, obesity, for studies listed from database inception to October 2021. Results: Leptin, produced mainly by white adipose tissue, inhibits the hunger center in the hypothalamus by negative feedback with ghrelin secreted by the gastrointestinal tract. Leptin is involved in numerous biological functions, including body weight regulation, innate and adaptive immunity regulation, reproduction, and bone formation. Studies confirm decreased leptin levels in AN individuals. In recent years, extensive experience has been gained with leptin as a drug in clinical trials. The studies suggested that treatment can restore menstrual function and bone health and improve mood with unclear body weight effects. Conclusions: Focusing on leptin-related changes is a promising approach to improve AN management. Assessment of leptin levels in AN patients could be a useful tool for therapy monitoring. Treatment with leptin could reverse unfavourable changes induced by diet restriction, including mood symptoms, loss of bone mass and menstrual function. However, the results of these studies need confirmation on larger groups of patients.

Background/Objectives: Anorexia nervosa (AN) remains difficult to treat, and evidence for biological adjunctive interventions is limited. This study assessed the effectiveness of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) as an adjunctive intervention in hospitalized patients with AN. Methods: In this double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled trial, 40 female inpatients with AN were allocated 1:1 to active tDCS or sham stimulation. Participants received 30 sessions over 3 weeks (2 mA, 25 min, twice daily on weekdays; anode F3, cathode F4), alongside standard inpatient treatment. Assessments were performed at baseline, post-intervention, and 2-week follow-up. Outcomes included eating disorder (ED) symptoms (EAT-26), depressive symptoms (BDI), perceived stress (PSS-10), self-esteem (SES), body mass index (BMI), and selected biological markers. Results: EAT-26 scores improved significantly from baseline to post-intervention in both groups; at the 2-week follow-up, scores remained significantly lower than baseline only in the active tDCS group. BMI and leptin increased significantly in both groups, while NT-3 decreased only in the active group. In multivariate analyses, higher leptin levels and greater perceived stress, adjusted for longer illness duration, were associated with greater improvement in ED symptoms; perceived stress predicted symptom improvement only in the active group. Conclusions: Active tDCS did not produce significantly greater short-term symptom reduction than sham in hospitalized patients with AN. However, findings observed at the 2-week follow-up and associations involving stress-related and metabolic measures require confirmation in studies with longer follow-up periods.

Cariprazine (CAR) and lurasidone (LUR) are antipsychotic drugs used to treat schizophrenia. These drugs are relatively new in clinical practice, and there is a need to optimise and develop analytical methods for their determination in various biological matrices for biomedical analysis. To date, the detection of these drugs has been performed in serum and urine, but there are no methods for determining these drugs in saliva. In the first part of this study, various chromatographic systems were compared using high-performance liquid chromatography with diode array detection (HPLC-DAD) or coupled with quadrupole–linear ion trap tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-QTRAP-MS/MS), taking into account the retention of tested compounds, system efficiency and peak symmetry. Next, a simple, rapid, and sensitive HPLC-QTRAP-MS/MS method has been developed for the determination of CAR and LUR in human serum, urine, and, for the first time, in saliva samples. Solid-phase extraction (SPE) was used for sample pre-treatment. Quantifications were carried out using a Polar RP column with a mobile phase consisting of acetonitrile and a formate buffer at pH 4.0 in gradient mode. The method was successfully applied for the determination of CAR and LUR in biological samples obtained from psychiatric patients. The findings suggest that saliva may be a non-invasive alternative for the quantification of free levels of investigated drugs, although further studies are required to clarify its relationship with plasma concentrations.