title: Mental disorders, functional impairment, and nerve growth factor.
abstract: Nerve growth factor (NGF) is an important member of the neurotrophin family and its alteration has been associated with psychiatric disorders. Functionality consists of the activities that an individual can perform, as well as their social participation, which is an important factor in analyzing the carrier living conditions of subjects with psychiatric suffering. Several studies have evaluated functionality in bipolar disorder; however, no studies have evaluated the functionality in other mental disorders. There are also few studies investigating the association between functionality and the biological bases of mental disorders. This study aimed to evaluate the serum NGF levels in psychiatric patients and to verify a possible association between the serum neurotrophic levels and functionality. This was a cross-sectional study with a convenient sample obtained from the Public Mental Health Service from the south of Brazil. The final sample was composed of 286 patients enrolled from July 2013 to October 2014. Data was collected using a sociodemographic questionnaire, and the diagnosis was confirmed using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (M.I.N.I) and a Functioning Assessment Short Test. The serum NGF levels were determined using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistic 21.0 software. NGF serum levels were increased significantly in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder compared with patients with no obsessive-compulsive disorder (P=0.015). An increase in serum NGF levels in generalized anxiety disorder patients was observed compared with patients with no generalized anxiety disorder (P=0.047). NGF was negatively associated with autonomy (P=0.024,r=-0.136), work (P=0.040,r=-0.124), and cognition (P=0.024,r=-0.137), thereby showing that changes in serum levels of NGF are associated with functionality in mental disorders.
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fanny Helena Martins
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Salles
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Pedro San Martin
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Soares
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carolina David
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Wiener
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Thaise Campos
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Mondin
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Paula Moraes
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; Translational Psychiatry Program; Center of Excellence on Mood Disorders, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) Medical School, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Jansen
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Luciano Dias
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: de Mattos Souza
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
authors.forename: Ricardo Azevedo
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: Translational Science on Brain Disorders, Department of Health and Behavior, Catholic University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil; Translational Psychiatry Program; Center of Excellence on Mood Disorders, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) Medical School, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Jean Pierre
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Oses
keywords: NGF; functional impairment; mental disorders