title: Seasonal and mood independence of low basal prolactin secretion in premenopausal women with seasonal affective disorder.
abstract: To test hypotheses of opposing roles of dopamine and serotonin in prolactin secretion in seasonal affective disorder, the authors determined basal serum prolactin concentrations for premenopausal women, eight with and 14 without seasonal affective disorder, in late afternoon during the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle (and a subgroup during the luteal phase) in winter and summer. Despite their significantly higher Hamilton depression scale scores in winter than in summer, the patients had significantly lower prolactin concentrations than the control subjects in both seasons. These results suggest that low prolactin secretion may be a trait characteristic in seasonal affective disorder.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis 55455.
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Depue
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Arbisi
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Spoont
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Krauss
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leon
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ainsworth
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000097:blood* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D004298:Dopamine / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008597:Menstrual Cycle; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011388:Prolactin / Q000097:blood*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012621:Seasons; D012701:Serotonin / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D012701:Serotonin; D011388:Prolactin; D004298:Dopamine