Relationship between urinary free cortisol and CSF opioid binding activity in depressed patients and normal volunteers.
We investigated the relationship between hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) activity, as measured by 24-hour mean urinary free cortisol (MUFC), and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) opioid activity in patients with major affective disorder and normal volunteers. Among depressed patients, but not normal volunteers, mean 24-hour urinary cortisol values were significantly correlated with CSF opioid activity measured by radioreceptor assay, but were not significantly correlated with beta-endorphin immunoreactivity measured by radioimmunoassay. MUFC, as expected, was significantly higher in depressed patients than in normal volunteers. Mean values of CSF opioid activity and beta-endorphin immunoreactivity did not differ significantly in the two groups. The positive opioid-MUFC correlation found in the depressed group appeared to depend on patients who were cortisol hypersecretors. These data, using relatively crude measures of cortisol and opioid activity, are suggestive of a relationship between these two systems, particularly under "activated" conditions such as those observed in depression.
D000328:Adult; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000378:metabolism; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000378:metabolism*; D004723:Endorphins / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000652:urine*; D008297:Male; D011863:Radioimmunoassay; D011869:Radioligand Assay; D011957:Receptors, Opioid / Q000378:metabolism*; D001615:beta-Endorphin
D004723:Endorphins; D011957:Receptors, Opioid; D001615:beta-Endorphin; D006854:Hydrocortisone