title: Measurement methods of BDNF levels in major depression: a qualitative systematic review of clinical trials.
abstract: There is evidence that the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) has implications for the pathophysiology of major depressive disorders (MDD). Measures of BDNF levels are highly dependent on the methodologies used and these vary among different studies. Therefore, the aim of this study was to carry out a descriptive analysis of the methodologies used to measure BDNF in clinical trials (CT) in patients with the diagnosis of major depression. We conducted a qualitative systematic review of CT that included samples of subjects diagnosed with major depression and evaluated the BDNF levels as an outcome. The search was performed on Pubmed, Scielo, Psychinfo and Lilacs. The selected articles were analyzed according to the CONSORT Statement and their methods of BDNF collection and analysis were described. Twenty-eight studies were included in the final analysis. Of those, 6 trials (21.4%) involved non-pharmacological interventions and only half had the MDD diagnosis based on structured interview. Trials used different methods to evaluate BDNF levels: most of them verified serum BDNF levels, 17 (60.7%) trials mentioned that measured BDNF levels in duplicate and 9 (32.1%) collected blood in fasting. A variety of methods for BDNF collection and analysis was used in the different studies, making it difficult to compare results. However, despite of the methodology, BDNF seems to increase after treatment for major depression.
authors.affiliation: UFRGS, Porto Alegre, Brazil, stepigatto@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Stefania Pigatto
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Teche
authors.forename: Gabriela Lotin
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Nuernberg
authors.forename: Anne Orgler
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Sordi
authors.forename: Lívia Hartmann
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: de Souza
authors.forename: Lysa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Remy
authors.forename: Keila Maria Mendes
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Ceresér
authors.forename: Neusa Sica
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Rocha
mesh_terms: D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor / Q000032:analysis* / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic; D013048:Specimen Handling / Q000379:methods; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000928:Antidepressive Agents; D015415:Biomarkers; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic
references.citation: Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2005 Dec;255(6):381-6
references.pmid: 15809771
references.citation: Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2005 Feb;29(2):261-5
references.pmid: 15694233
references.citation: J Clin Psychiatry. 2009 Dec;70(12):1662-6
references.pmid: 19744406
references.citation: J Affect Disord. 2006 Mar;91(1):83-6
references.pmid: 16448701
references.citation: J Psychopharmacol. 2010 Dec;24(12):1755-63
references.pmid: 19493959
references.citation: J Psychopharmacol. 2010 Dec;24(12):1764-71
references.pmid: 19825907
references.citation: Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1994 Jan;51(1):8-19
references.pmid: 8279933
references.citation: Psychiatry Res. 2011 Sep 30;189(2):239-45
references.pmid: 21616544
references.citation: J Psychiatr Res. 2008 Jun;42(7):521-5
references.pmid: 17585940
references.citation: Brain Res. 1996 Feb 12;709(1):122-301
references.pmid: 8869564
references.citation: Rev Bras Ter Intensiva. 2008 Dec;20(4):411-21
references.pmid: 25307248
references.citation: Neuropsychobiology. 2008;57(4):194-9
references.pmid: 18679038
references.citation: Brain Res Bull. 2007 Jun 15;73(1-3):143-9
references.pmid: 17499648
references.citation: JAMA. 2001 Nov 21;286(19):2391
references.pmid: 11712923
references.citation: Pharmacopsychiatry. 2006 Mar;39(2):52-9
references.pmid: 16555165
references.citation: World J Biol Psychiatry. 2010 Sep;11(6):763-73
references.pmid: 20334574
references.citation: Psychiatry Res. 2009 Oct 30;169(3):244-8
references.pmid: 19729204
references.citation: J Neurosci. 1990 Nov;10(11):3469-78
references.pmid: 2230938
references.citation: Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2007 Jun 30;31(5):1034-7
references.pmid: 17459550
references.citation: Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1993 Feb;50(2):85-94
references.pmid: 8427558
references.citation: Nat Neurosci. 2005 Aug;8(8):1069-77
references.pmid: 16025106
references.citation: J Neurosci. 2005 Jun 1;25(22):5455-63
references.pmid: 15930396
references.citation: J Psychiatr Res. 2009 Jan;43(3):247-54
references.pmid: 18511076
references.citation: Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2010 Jun;64(3):249-54
references.pmid: 20602725
references.citation: Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol. 2009 Apr;36(4):425-35
references.pmid: 19018805
references.citation: Hum Psychopharmacol. 2008 Dec;23(8):707-13
references.pmid: 18803170
references.citation: Biol Psychiatry. 2008 Sep 15;64(6):527-32
references.pmid: 18571629
references.citation: Eur Neuropsychopharmacol. 2006 Dec;16(8):620-4
references.pmid: 16757154
references.citation: Neuropsychopharmacology. 2009 May;34(6):1523-32
references.pmid: 19020498
references.citation: Science. 1996 Nov 1;274(5288):740-3
references.pmid: 8966556
references.citation: Pharmacopsychiatry. 2008 Mar;41(2):66-71
references.pmid: 18311687
references.citation: Brain Res Bull. 2009 Sep 28;80(3):158-62
references.pmid: 19576267
references.citation: Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2009 Jun 15;33(4):722-6
references.pmid: 19332097
references.citation: J Neurosci. 2009 Oct 14;29(41):12764-7
references.pmid: 19828787
references.citation: Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 2008 Dec;11(8):1169-80
references.pmid: 18752720
references.citation: Science. 2004 Oct 15;306(5695):487-91
references.pmid: 15486301
references.citation: Neuropsychobiology. 2011;63(4):219-23
references.pmid: 21422768
references.citation: Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2006 Sep 30;30(7):1256-60
references.pmid: 16647794
references.citation: Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2006 Jul;187(1):56-9
references.pmid: 16767416
references.citation: Protein Expr Purif. 1995 Aug;6(4):465-71
references.pmid: 8527932
references.citation: Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2011 Mar 30;35(2):415-20
references.pmid: 20732374
references.citation: J ECT. 2010 Jun;26(2):121-5
references.pmid: 19935088
references.citation: J Affect Disord. 2008 Jan;105(1-3):279-83
references.pmid: 17553570
references.citation: Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2011 Jul;216(1):1-8
references.pmid: 21308467
references.citation: Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2009 Mar 17;33(2):281-5
references.pmid: 19110026