Increased serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor in chronic institutionalized patients with schizophrenia.
There is a growing body of evidence implicating the neurotrophin brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. As circulating BDNF levels may reflect the BDNF levels in the brain, we assessed serum BDNF in 40 institutionalized schizophrenic patients and 20 healthy controls. Serum BNDF levels were significantly increased in schizophrenic patients when compared to control subjects (p<0.001). Interestingly, serum BDNF correlated positively with the clinical scores at the negative subscale of the positive and negative syndrome scale (PANSS) (r=0.41; p<0.01). Our results confirm the emergent literature on the involvement of BDNF in schizophrenia.
Group of Neuroimmunology, Laboratory of Immunopharmacology, Department of Biochemistry and Immunology, Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
Helton José
HJ
Reis
Rodrigo
R
Nicolato
Izabela Guimarães
IG
Barbosa
Paulo Henrique
PH
Teixeira do Prado
Marco Aurélio
MA
Romano-Silva
Antonio Lucio
AL
Teixeira
D000328:Adult; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006778:Hospitals, Psychiatric; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000097:blood*
D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor