Serum Levels of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor at 4 Weeks and Response to Treatment with SSRIs

Objective It is important to predict a response to an antidepressant in early time after starting the antidepressant. We previously reported that serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels in responders to treatment with antidepressants were increased, whereas, those in nonresponders were not. Therefore, we hypothesized that the changes in serum levels of BDNF from baseline (TO) to 4 weeks (T4) after treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) predict the response to the treatment at 8 weeks (T8) in depressed patients. To confirm the hypothesis, we measured serum BDNF at TO, T4, and T8 during the treatment with SSRIs (paroxetine, sertraline, and fluvoxamine). Methods One hundred fifty patients (M/F; 51/99, age; 50.4 +/- 15.1 years) met major depressive disorder (MDD) using by DSM-IV-TR enrolled in the present study. We measured serum BDNF concentrations at TO, T4, and T8 in patients with MDD treated with SSRIs. Results The changes in serum BDNF, age, sex, dose of SSRIs, and HAMD-17 score did not predict the response to SSRIs at T8. Conclusion These results suggest that the changes in serum BDNF levels from TO to T4 could not predict the subsequent responses to SSRIs at T8

Possible association of CUX1 gene polymorphisms with antidepressant response in major depressive disorder

Association between response to antidepressant treatment and genetic polymorphisms was examined in two independent Japanese samples of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Genome-wide approach using the Illumina Human CNV370-quad Bead Chip was utilized in the analysis of the 92 MDD patients in the first sample. In all, 11 non-intergenic single-nucleotide polymorphisms with uncorrected allelic P-value <0.0001 were selected for the subsequent association analyses in the second sample of 136 MDD patients. Difference in allele distribution between responders and nonresponders were found in the second-stage sample for rs365836 and rs201522 of the CUX1 gene (P=0.005 and 0.004, respectively). The allelic P-values for rs365836 and rs201522 in both samples combined were 0.0000023 and 0.0000040, respectively. Our results provide the first evidence that polymorphisms of the CUX1 gene may be associated with response to antidepressant treatment in Japanese patients with MDD.ArticlePHARMACOGENOMICS JOURNAL. 13(4):354-358 (2013)journal articl

Serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor: Determinants and relationship with depressive symptoms in a community population of middle-aged and elderly people

OBJECTIVES: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is involved in major depressive disorder and neurodegenerative diseases. Clinical studies, showing decreased serum BDNF levels, are difficult to interpret due to limited knowledge of potential confounders and mixed results for age and sex effects. We explored potential determinants of serum BDNF levels in a community sample of 1230 subjects. METHODS: Multiple linear regression analyses with serum BDNF level as the dependent variable were conducted to explore the effect of four categories of potential BDNF determinants (sampling characteristics, sociodemographic variables, lifestyle factors and somatic diseases) and of self-reported depressive symptoms (Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI). RESULTS: Our results show that BDNF levels decline with age in women, whereas in men levels remain stable. Moreover, after controlling for age and gender, the assays still showed lower serum BDNF levels with higher BDI sum scores. Effects remained significant after correction for two main confounders (time of sampling and smoking), suggesting that they serve as molecular trait factors independent of lifestyle factors. CONCLUSIONS: Given the age-sex interaction on serum BDNF levels and the known association between BDNF and gonadal hormones, research is warranted to delineate the effects of the latter interaction on the risk of psychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases

Manipulating the Hype: contemporary art's response to media cliches

Manipulating the Hype addresses art’s reaction to the barrage of signs produced by the media. The paper researches contemporary art’s response to clichéd media stereotypes and elucidates artists’ multifaceted perspective on overtly obvious yet widely embraced paradigms marketed by the media. Contemporary art’s strategic reconfiguration of media stereotypes is a valuable introspection upon the superficiality and impracticability of advertising and entertainment industry constructs. By reconsidering the mediated image, art has the ability to inspire reevaluation of cultural values. The thesis additionally attempts to ascertain the reinterpretation of media stereotypes as a common thread linking principal art movements and historically significant artworks from around the world since 1960. How does contemporary art respond to the extensive cultural influence of the media? Is a reaction to mass media a thematic commonality linking contemporary artists in the age of globalization? Manipulating the Hype is a dual outcome investigation comprised of written thesis and studio practice. The written thesis combines experience from a lengthy professional practice with historical and theoretical research. The visual thesis consists of twelve photographic works taken at on the Big Island of Hawaii. The images juxtapose artificial icons of power from popular culture with the natural force of the active lava flow. The process of research discloses how the advertising and entertainment industries capitalize upon innate human desires through the manipulative proliferation of archetypal imagery. Furthermore, the thesis establishes the widespread retort to media clichés as a palpable commonality in studio practices worldwide. The findings in the research make evident that although contemporary art does not have sufficient influence to reform the media, it can heighten public awareness of media tactics

COMT Val158Met, but not BDNF Val66Met, is associated with white matter abnormalities of the temporal lobe in patients with first-episode, treatment-na&iuml;ve major depressive disorder: a diffusion tensor imaging study

Kenji Hayashi,1 Reiji Yoshimura,1 Shingo Kakeda,2 Taro Kishi,3 Osamu Abe,4 Wakako Umene-Nakano,1 Asuka Katsuki,1 Hikaru Hori,1 Atsuko Ikenouchi-Sugita,1 Keita Watanabe,2 Satoru Ide,2 Issei Ueda,2 Junji Moriya,2 Nakao Iwata,3 Yukunori Korogi,2 Marek Kubicki,5 Jun Nakamura1 1Department of Psychiatry, 2Department of Radiology, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Kitakyushu, Japan; 3Department of Psychiatry, Fujita Health University, Toyoake, Japan; 4Department of Radiology, Nihon University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan; 5Psychiatry Neuroimaging Laboratory, Brigham and Women&#39;s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA Abstract: We investigated the association between the Val158Met polymorphism of the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene, the Val66Met polymorphism of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene, and white matter changes in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and healthy subjects using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). We studied 30 patients with MDD (17 males and 13 females, with mean age &plusmn; standard deviation [SD] =44&plusmn;12 years) and 30 sex- and age-matched healthy controls (17 males and 13 females, aged 44&plusmn;13 years). Using DTI analysis with a tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) approach, we investigated the differences in fractional anisotropy, radial diffusivity, and axial diffusivity distribution among the three groups (patients with the COMT gene Val158Met, those with the BDNF gene Val66Met, and the healthy subjects). In a voxel-wise-based group comparison, we found significant decreases in fractional anisotropy and axial diffusivity within the temporal lobe white matter in the Met-carriers with MDD compared with the controls (P&lt;0.05). No correlations in fractional anisotropy, axial diffusivity, or radial diffusivity were observed between the MDD patients and the controls, either among those with the BDNF Val/Val genotype or among the BDNF Met-carriers. These results suggest an association between the COMT gene Val158Met and the white matter abnormalities found in the temporal lobe of patients with MDD.&nbsp;Keywords: catechol-O-methyltransferase, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol, homovanillic aci

Possible association of CUX1 gene polymorphisms with antidepressant response in major depressive disorder

Association between response to antidepressant treatment and genetic polymorphisms was examined in two independent Japanese samples of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Genome-wide approach using the Illumina Human CNV370-quad Bead Chip was utilized in the analysis of the 92 MDD patients in the first sample. In all, 11 non-intergenic single-nucleotide polymorphisms with uncorrected allelic P-value <0.0001 were selected for the subsequent association analyses in the second sample of 136 MDD patients. Difference in allele distribution between responders and nonresponders were found in the second-stage sample for rs365836 and rs201522 of the CUX1 gene (P=0.005 and 0.004, respectively). The allelic P-values for rs365836 and rs201522 in both samples combined were 0.0000023 and 0.0000040, respectively. Our results provide the first evidence that polymorphisms of the CUX1 gene may be associated with response to antidepressant treatment in Japanese patients with MDD.ArticlePHARMACOGENOMICS JOURNAL. 13(4):354-358 (2013)journal articl