Brain serotonin2 receptors in major depression: a positron emission tomography study.
BACKGROUND
Postmortem and brain imaging studies that measured brain serotinin(2) (5-HT(2)) receptors in major depression reported an increase, decrease, and no change compared with controls. In this study, we assessed brain 5-HT(2) receptors in 20 depressed patients (mean +/- SD age, 40.1 +/- 9.5 years; range, 22-60 years) and 20 healthy controls similar in age (37.2 +/- 12.6 years; range, 19-59 years) using positron emission tomography and setoperone labeled with fluorine 18 ([(18)F]setoperone).


METHODS
Patients with DSM-IV major depression and healthy controls underwent scanning with [(18)F]setoperone. All study subjects were drug free for at least 2 weeks. The 5-HT(2) binding images were created using region-to-cerebellum ratios. The differences in 5-HT(2) receptor binding potential between the two groups were determined with statistical parametric mapping software and region of interest analysis.


RESULTS
There was a significant negative correlation between 5-HT(2) receptor binding potential and age in both patients and controls, and the magnitude of this correlation was similar in both groups. Both statistical parametric mapping and region of interest analyses showed that, compared with healthy controls, depressed patients had significantly lower 5-HT(2) receptor binding potential in frontal, temporal, parietal, and occipital cortical regions. Statistical parametric mapping analysis showed that the mean decrease in 5-HT(2) receptor binding potential for the entire cluster in these regions was 22%, and it ranged from 22% to 27% for local maxima within the clusters of significant voxels.


CONCLUSIONS
This study suggests that brain 5-HT(2) receptors are decreased in patients with major depression.
Yatham
L N
LN
Mood Disorders Clinical Research Unit, The University of British Columbia, 2255 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 2A1. yatham@unixg.ubc.ca
Liddle
P F
PF
Shiah
I S
IS
Scarrow
G
G
Lam
R W
RW
Adam
M J
MJ
Zis
A P
AP
Ruth
T J
TJ
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism*; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000737:chemistry / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D005462:Fluorine Radioisotopes; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000737:chemistry / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009778:Occipital Lobe / Q000737:chemistry / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000737:chemistry / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism; D011744:Pyrimidinones; D011985:Receptors, Serotonin / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D012737:Sex Factors; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000737:chemistry / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
D005462:Fluorine Radioisotopes; D011744:Pyrimidinones; D011985:Receptors, Serotonin; C045359:setoperone