Somatostatin in Alzheimer's disease and depression.
Somatostatin (somatotropin release-inhibiting factor, SRIF) was originally discovered (1) during the purification of growth hormone-releasing factor from rat hypothalamus and was subsequently isolated and characterized (2) in 1972 from ovine hypothalamus. Since its initial characterization, SRIF has been shown to fulfill criteria for a neurotransmitter and to directly modulate neuronal activity as well as acting as an inhibitory factor regulating endocrine and exocrine secretion. Alterations in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations of SRIF have been reported in several diseases exhibiting prominent cognitive dysfunction, including Alzheimer's disease (AD), major depression, Huntington's chorea, multiple sclerosis, schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease, while evidence for regional brain tissue concentration deficits in SRIF are more specific for AD. This mini-review will focus on the studies reporting alterations in CSF and postmortem tissue concentrations of SRIF in AD and depression.
Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710.
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Bissette
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Myers
D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000378:metabolism*; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism; D002493:Central Nervous System Diseases / Q000378:metabolism; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D013004:Somatostatin / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000378:metabolism*
D013004:Somatostatin