Whether or not you're prone to binge-eating might come down to the amount of one specific enzyme your brain got while you were growing up.
March 20, 2026
Original Paper
Midbrain Tet1 dosage defines inter-individual binge-eating susceptibility
bioRxiv · 10.64898/2026.03.14.711800
The Takeaway
Even in genetically identical mice, variations in the level of the Tet1 enzyme created stable differences in eating behavior. The researchers traced this to specific brain wiring that can be reversed by reactivating the enzyme later in life.
From the abstract
Binge-eating disorder (BED) is the most common eating disorder worldwide and carries life-altering comorbidities. While genetic and environmental risk factors have been identified, the mechanisms that determine inter-individual susceptibility to BED remain largely unknown. Here, we demonstrate that developmental dosage of the DNA hydroxymethylase Tet1 defines stable inter-individual differences in binge-eating susceptibility. In mice, midbrain dopaminergic neurons of the ventral tegmental area (