title: Unstimulated and glucose-stimulated ghrelin in depressed patients and controls.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The neuropeptide ghrelin stimulates hunger and weight gain. Ghrelin actions have been associated with depression in a number of preclinical and clinical studies, although some studies comparing basal peripheral ghrelin levels between depressed patients and controls found no differences between the groups.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty patients with a melancholic depressive episode and 15 controls received a 75 g glucose load and ghrelin levels were measured at 0, 30, 60 and 90 min after the beginning of the test. The patients were then either treated with mirtazapine (n=10) or venlafaxine (n=10) and underwent the same procedure (glucose load and ghrelin assessment) after four weeks of treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Basal ghrelin concentrations did not differ between patients and controls, although the ghrelin responses following the glucose load were lower in patients and differed significantly to the controls' responses. After treatment, the patients' ghrelin responses to the glucose load increased by trend and approximated those in the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Ghrelin is involved in appetite-regulating pathways during depression. For the first time we show that a functional test procedure using a standardised glucose load is more suitable than the assessment of basal peripheral ghrelin levels to detect differences between diagnostic groups.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany paslakis@gmx.de.
authors.forename: Georgios
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Paslakis
authors.affiliation: Institute of Clinical Chemistry, Magdeburg University Hospital, Magdeburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Westphal
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: Bettina
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hamann
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gilles
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lederbogen
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Deuschle
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000929:Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001069:Appetite Regulation; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D003863:Depression / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D054439:Ghrelin / Q000097:blood*; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008803:Mianserin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008875:Middle Aged; D000078785:Mirtazapine; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D000069470:Venlafaxine Hydrochloride / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation; D000929:Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic; D015415:Biomarkers; D001786:Blood Glucose; C515349:GHRL protein, human; D054439:Ghrelin; D008803:Mianserin; D000069470:Venlafaxine Hydrochloride; D000078785:Mirtazapine
keywords: Depression; ghrelin; glucose; mirtazapine; venlafaxine