Association study of functional polymorphisms of dopaminergic pathway in epilepsy-related factors of temporal lobe epilepsy in Brazilian population.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: There are few data about the role of neurotransmission modulated by dopamine in epilepsy, especially temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). This is the first study that aimed to analyze the dopaminergic polymorphisms in an etiologically homogeneous group of patients with TLE with hippocampal sclerosis. Selected polymorphisms were: (i) the most expressed D2-like receptors in the limbic system (DRD2/ANKK1 TAQ-1A, D4_VNTR and D4_rs1800955); (ii) the dopamine transporter (DAT) 3'-untranslated region and intron 8; and (iii) two degrading enzymes regulating the synaptic activity, i.e. the main metabolizer of dopamine, catechol-O-methyltransferase, and monoamine oxidase A. METHODS: We assessed 119 patients with unequivocal TLE with hippocampal sclerosis and 112 healthy volunteers. Individuals were genotyped for the polymorphisms of the gene encoding dopaminergic pathway transporter DAT haplotype, dopaminergic receptors, catechol-O-methyltransferase and monoamine oxidase A. We also evaluated epilepsy-related factors (e.g. seizure frequency, age of onset, duration and status epilepticus). RESULTS: There was no difference between the groups for the studied polymorphisms. The polymorphism DRD4_VNTR was associated with family history of epilepsy (P = 0.003), DRD2_rs1800497 was related to status epilepticus (P = 0.022), and intron 8 VNTR DAT was related to higher seizure frequency (P = 0.019) and family history of epilepsy (P = 0.011). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrated that polymorphisms of the dopaminergic pathway are associated with significant clinical features of this form of epilepsy, such as seizure frequency, family history of epilepsy and status epilepticus.

State-dependent microstructural white matter changes in drug-naïve patients with first-episode psychosis.

BACKGROUND: Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies have consistently shown white matter (WM) microstructural abnormalities in schizophrenia. Whether or not such alterations could vary depending on clinical status (i.e. acute psychosis v. remission) remains to be investigated. METHODS: Twenty-five treatment-naïve first-episode psychosis (FEP) patients and 51 healthy-controls (HC) underwent MRI scanning at baseline. Twenty-one patients were re-scanned as soon as they achieved sustained remission of symptoms; 36 HC were also scanned twice. Rate-of-change maps of longitudinal DTI changes were calculated for in order to examine WM alterations associated with changes in clinical status. We conducted voxelwise analyses of fractional anisotropy (FA) and trace (TR) maps. RESULTS: At baseline, FEP presented reductions of FA in comparison with HC [p < 0.05, false-discovery rate (FDR)-corrected] affecting fronto-limbic WM and associative, projective and commissural fasciculi. After symptom remission, patients showed FA increase over time (p < 0.001, uncorrected) in some of the above WM tracts, namely the right anterior thalamic radiation, right uncinate fasciculus/inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, and left inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus/inferior longitudinal fasciculus. We also found significant correlations between reductions in PANSS scores and FA increases over time (p < 0.05, FDR-corrected). CONCLUSIONS: WM changes affecting brain tracts critical to the integration of perceptual information, cognition and emotions are detectable soon after the onset of FEP and may partially reverse in direct relation to the remission of acute psychotic symptoms. Our findings reinforce the view that WM abnormalities in brain tracts are a key neurobiological feature of acute psychotic disorders, and recovery from such WM pathology can lead to amelioration of symptoms.

5-hydroxytryptamine1A receptor density in the hippocampus of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy is associated with disease duration.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: To date, no study has evaluated the association between serotonin receptor density and clinical variables in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy caused by hippocampal sclerosis (TLE-HS) using hippocampal tissue. We evaluated 5-hydroxytryptamine1A receptor (5-HT1AR) density in hippocampal tissue from patients with TLE-HS. METHODS: We analyzed the hippocampal tissue of 34 patients with pharmacoresistant unilateral TLE-HS. 5-HT1AR density was measured using semiquantitative western blotting. RESULTS: There was an association between higher density of 5-HT1AR and longer duration of epilepsy (Spearman correlation: P = 0.040; generalized linear model: P = 0.026). CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that hippocampal 5-HT1AR density is associated with epilepsy duration in patients with TLE-HS. The authors postulate that this may represent a potential regulatory enhancement of endogenous serotonergic neurotransmission in response to prolonged and enduring epileptiform activity in the hippocampal tissue of patients with pharmacoresistant TLE-HS.

A Selective Association between Central and Peripheral Lithium Levels in Remitters in Bipolar Depression: A 3T-(7) Li Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Study.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate brain lithium levels using (7) Li magnetic resonance spectroscopy after 6 weeks of lithium therapy in bipolar depression to test the hypothesis that brain and plasma lithium are correlated. It was also tested whether responders and remitters have different pharmacokinetics, blood and brain lithium levels (ratio) compared with those presenting suboptimal antidepressant improvement. METHOD: Twenty-three patients with bipolar disorder (I and II) during depressive episodes were included and followed up for 6 weeks at the University of Sao Paulo using flexible dose of lithium (450-900 mg/day). Sixteen patients were drug-naïve. At endpoint, patients underwent a (7) Li-MRS scan and brain lithium concentrations were calculated. RESULTS: A significant association between central and peripheral lithium levels was found only in remitters (r = 0.7, P = 0.004) but not in non-remitters (r = -0.12, P = 0.76). Also, brain lithium (but not plasma) was inversely correlated with age (r = -0.46, P = 0.025). Plasma lithium did not correlate with any clinical outcome, lithium dosage or adverse effects. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that non-remitters may not transport lithium properly to the brain, which may underlie treatment resistance to lithium in BD. Future studies with (7) Li-MRS integrated with the evaluation of blood-brain barrier transport mechanisms and longitudinal clinical outcomes in BD and aging are warranted.

Increased iPLA2 activity and levels of phosphorylated GSK3B in platelets are associated with donepezil treatment in Alzheimer's disease patients.

Reduced phospholipase A2 (PLA2) activity and increased phosphorylation of glycogen synthase kinase 3B (GSK3B) participate in the production of beta-amyloid plaques and of neurofibrillary tangles, which are two neuropathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Experimental evidences suggest a neuroprotective effect of the cholinesterase inhibitor donepezil in the treatment the disease. The aims of the present study were to evaluate in AD patients the effects of treatment with donepezil on PLA2 activity and GSK3B level. Thirty patients with AD were treated during 6 months with 10 mg daily of donepezil. Radio-enzymatic assays were used to measure PLA2 activity and Elisa assays for GSK3B level, both in platelets. Before treatment and after 3 and 6 months on donepezil, AD patients underwent a cognitive assessment and platelet samples were collected. Values were compared to a healthy control group of 42 sex- and age-matched elderly individuals. Before treatment, iPLA2 activity was lower in patients with AD as compared to controls (p < 0.001). At baseline, no differences were found in GSK3B level between both groups. After 3 and 6 months of treatment, we found a significant increase in iPLA2 activity (p = 0.015 and p < 0.001, respectively). iPLA2 increment was related to the cognitive improvement during treatment (p = 0.037). After 6 months, we found an increase in phosphorylated GSK3B (p = 0.02). The present findings suggest two possible mechanisms by which donepezil delays the progression of AD. The increment of iPLA2 activity may reduce the production of beta-amyloid plaques, whereas the phosphorylation of GSK3B inactivates the enzyme, reducing thus the phosphorylation of tau protein.

Translating neurotrophic and cellular plasticity: from pathophysiology to improved therapeutics for bipolar disorder.

OBJECTIVE: Bipolar disorder (BD) likely involves, at a molecular and cellular level, dysfunctions of critical neurotrophic, cellular plasticity and resilience pathways and neuroprotective processes. Therapeutic properties of mood stabilizers are presumed to result from a restoration of the function of these altered pathways and processes through a wide range of biochemical and molecular effects. We aimed to review the altered pathways and processes implicated in BD, such as neurotrophic factors, mitogen-activated protein kinases, Bcl-2, phosphoinositol signaling, intracellular calcium and glycogen synthase kinase-3. METHODS: We undertook a literature search of recent relevant journal articles, book chapter and reviews on neurodegeneration and neuroprotection in BD. Search words entered were 'brain-derived neurotrophic factor,''Bcl-2,''mitogen-activated protein kinases,''neuroprotection,''calcium,''bipolar disorder,''mania,' and 'depression.' RESULTS: The most consistent and replicated findings in the pathophysiology of BD may be classified as follows: i) calcium dysregulation, ii) mitochondrial/endoplasmic reticulum dysfunction, iii) glial and neuronal death/atrophy and iv) loss of neurotrophic/plasticity effects in brain areas critically involved in mood regulation. In addition, the evidence supports that treatment with mood stabilizers; in particular, lithium restores these pathophysiological changes. CONCLUSION: Bipolar disorder is associated with impairments in neurotrophic, cellular plasticity and resilience pathways as well as in neuroprotective processes. The evidence supports that treatment with mood stabilizers, in particular lithium, restores these pathophysiological changes. Studies that attempt to prevent (intervene before the onset of the molecular and cellular changes), treat (minimize severity of these deficits over time), and rectify (reverse molecular and cellular deficits) are promising therapeutic strategies for developing improved treatments for bipolar disorder.

Altered neurotrophin, neuropeptide, cytokines and nitric oxide levels in autism.

INTRODUCTION: Modifications in neurotrophins, neuropeptides, cytokines and nitric oxide (NO) levels in autism may represent different biological aspects of the disease. In the present study we investigate simultaneously all these variables as an attempt to clarify their interrelationships in autism. METHODS: Plasma levels of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), neurotrophin-3 (NT-3), cytokines and nitric oxide (NO) were determined in children with DSM-IV autistic disorder (n = 24) and in age- and gender-matched healthy controls (n = 24). VIP, NT-3, IFN-γ and IL-1ß levels were measured by ELISA, TNF-α, IL-10, IL-6, IL-4, IL-2 were evaluated by fl ow cytometry, and NO by Griess reaction. RESULTS: Plasma levels of VIP, IFN-γ and NO were significantly higher and NT-3 plasma levels were significantly lower in children with autism, compared to the healthy subjects. In children with autism there was a positive correlation between plasma levels of NO and IFN-γ. DISCUSSION: Our results indicate the presence of altered levels of neurotrophin and neuropeptide in infantile autism and provide additional evidence that higher levels of IFN-γ may be associated with increased oxidative stress in autism.

Body mass index increase, serum leptin, adiponectin, neuropeptide Y and lipid levels during treatment with olanzapine and haloperidol.

INTRODUCTION: Body mass index (BMI) increase is an undesired effect associated with antipsychotics, and crucial for patients' global health and treatment compliance. We aimed to investigate the relation between BMI during olanzapine or haloperidol treatments and leptin, neuropeptide Y (NPY), adiponectin and lipid serum levels. METHODS: In this 9-month, randomized and naturalist study, 34 male patients, 18 on olanzapine and 16 on haloperidol group were enrolled, all were under monotherapy. Patient outcome was evaluated with positive and negative syndrome scale (PANSS) at every 3-month period. In each visit, BMI, leptin, NPY, lipid, olanzapine or haloperidol levels were also monitored. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Leptin levels positively correlated with BMI in olanzapine (r=0.64, p<0.001) and haloperidol (r=0.73, p<0.001) groups; only in olanzapine patients, the former also correlated with PANSS score (r=0.54, p<0.05). NPY levels negatively correlated with olanzapine levels (r=− 0.65, p<0.01). Adiponectin levels had not significantly varied. CONCLUSION: Antipsychotics probably interfere on leptin and NPY signalling ways and disturb these hormones in eating behaviour control.

Increased brain membrane fluidity in schizophrenia.

Recent findings showing significant correlations between phospholipase A2 (PLA2) activity and structural changes in schizophrenic brains contribute to the membrane hypothesis of schizophrenia, which was hampered because a clean functional link between elevated PLA2 activity and brain structure was missing (Neuroimage, 2010; 52: 1314-1327). We measured membrane fluidity parameters and found that brain membranes isolated from the prefrontal cortex of schizophrenic patients showed significantly increased flexibility of fatty acid chains. Our findings support a possible link between elevated PLA2 activity in cortical areas of schizophrenic patients and subsequent alterations of the biophysical parameters of neuronal membranes leading to structural changes in these areas.

Does the degree of smoking effect the severity of tardive dyskinesia? A longitudinal clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Tardive dyskinesia (TD) is a movement disorder observed after chronic neuroleptic treatment. Smoking is presumed to increase the prevalence of TD. The question of a cause-effect-relationship between smoking and TD, however, remains to be answered. Purpose of this study was to examine the correlation between the degree of smoking and the severity of TD with respect to differences caused by medication. METHOD: We examined 60 patients suffering from schizophrenia and TD. We compared a clozapine-treated group with a group treated with typical neuroleptics. Movement disorders were assessed using the Abnormal-Involuntary-Movement-Scale and the technical device digital image processing, providing rater independent information on perioral movements. RESULTS: We found a strong correlation (.80

Cytochrome P450 genotypes are not associated with refractoriness to antipsychotic treatment.

Evidence validating the influence of the cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2D6 and 2C19 enzymes genetic polymorphisms in the response to antipsychotics is scarce. We examined the hypothesis that a higher prevalence of CYP2D6 and/or CYP2C19 ultra rapid metabolizers might be found among refractory schizophrenia patients. Three groups were studied: refractory and non-refractory schizophrenia patients, and healthy controls. Participants were genotyped for CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 polymorphisms and classified in metabolic phenotypes. No between-group differences in the distribution of the phenotypes were found. Therefore, our findings do not support the CYPs 2D6 and 2C19 genotyping in the prediction of therapeutic response in schizophrenia.

Pain perception threshold in major depression.

Somatosensory perception threshold (SPT) and pain perception threshold (PPT) were studied in 16 patients with major depression, compared to the findings in an age-matched and gender-matched control group and related to the psychopathological state evaluated by means of the Hamilton Depression Scale. Perception thresholds were assessed by means of a noninvasive high-frequency electric skin stimulation. Absolute perception thresholds were increased in the patients. However, the relative pain perception threshold (RPPT = PPT: SPT) was significantly reduced. RPPT was positively correlated with retardation. It was negatively correlated with anxiety, suggesting that a reduction of pain perception thresholds in depressive patients may be attributed to anxiety and impaired stress-coping.

Haloperidol increases the cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of cyclic GMP in schizophrenic patients.

The concentration of cyclic guanosine 3',5' monophosphate (cGMP) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is supposed to reflect central cholinergic activity. Earlier findings in the literature of decreased CSF concentrations of cGMP in drug-free schizophrenic patients accorded with the hypothesis of a cholinergic-dopaminergic imbalance in schizophrenia, with a relative dominance of dopaminergic activity. In the present study, treatment with haloperidol for 3 weeks significantly increased the CSF concentration of cGMP in 14 of 18 schizophrenics. This finding suggests that haloperidol and possibly other antipsychotic drugs might restore the cholinergic-dopaminergic balance in schizophrenia through central cholinergic stimulation in addition to the blockade of dopaminergic receptors.

Low angiotensin-converting enzyme activity (kininase II) in cerebrospinal fluid of schizophrenics.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (kininase II, E. C., 3.4.15.1) activity was present in lumbar cerebrospinal fluid of paranoid schizophrenic patients and psychiatrically healthy controls. Both schizophrenics under neuroleptic treatment and drug-free patients had low cerebrospinal enzyme activity when compared with controls. No correlation existed with the scores of the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale. A negative correlation of enzyme activity with cerebrospinal levels of both dopamine and noradrenaline was detected. Our findings suggest the possibility of a central alteration of the metabolism of neuropeptides in paranoid schizophrenia.

Multidimensional analysis of the concentrations of 17 substances in the CSF of schizophrenics and controls.

The concentrations of 17 substances were determined in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 28 paranoid schizophrenic patients and 16 controls. Results were standardized and simultaneously evaluated through Multidimensional Scaling (MDS). The full data set can be considered as a cloud of points consisting of the 44 subjects in the 17-dimensional parameter space. MDS seeks a two-dimensional representation of this 17-dimensional cloud of points, while retaining as much as possible the distances between the subjects. The two-dimensional reduction of the 17 CSF parameters correctly separated 15 of 16 controls from the schizophrenic subjects. This indicates that a biological heterogeneity between schizophrenic and nonschizophrenic subjects can be detected by the simultaneous analysis of the CSF concentrations of substances related directly or indirectly to the neuronal activity in the brain.

REM sleep parameters in the discrimination of probable Alzheimer's disease from old-age depression.

Thirteen dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) patients and fifteen old-age major depressive disorder (OAD) patients were investigated by polysomnography. The sleep was recorded during two nights after a 1 week wash-out period of psychotropic drugs. No statistically significant differences between the two groups were found concerning sleep continuity or architecture. The amount of REM sleep was significantly lower in DAT in comparison with OAD patients (11.7% verses 18.5%). Also, total REM density as well as the density of the first REM period were significantly lower in the DAT compared with the OAD patient group (15.8% verses 32.5%, 14.9% verses 38.1%, respectively). REM latency did not differ between both groups. Because REM latency is known from other studies to be shortened in depressed patients due to a cholinergic hyperactivity, the opposite finding, i.e., prolongation of REM latency, was expected for DAT patients. This assumption, however, could not be confirmed in the present study. It is concluded that REM density may better differentiate between DAT and OAD.

Acute and subchronic effects of low-dose bromocriptine in haloperidol-treated schizophrenics.

The effects of the acute (within 24 hr) and subchronic (21 days) addition of low-dose bromocriptine (2.5 mg/day) were compared to placebo in schizophrenic patients treated concomitantly with haloperidol. After 24 hr patients on bromocriptine (n = 15) showed a mean improvement of 29% in the total score of the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) as compared to 14% in the placebo group (n = 15) (p less than 0.10). The acute improvement correlated negatively with bromocriptine plasma levels; patients with the highest reduction in BPRS score had the lowest plasma levels (between 50 and 150 pg/ml) at 60, 90, and 120 min after intake. The improvement in the bromocriptine group continued until the 10th day of the trial, when a nonsignificant increase in the total BPRS score took place. Analysis of Variance of the overall BPRS improvement during the 21 days revealed no significant difference between both patient groups. Our results give modest support to the idea of an acute antipsychotic response to low-dose dopamine agonists in neuroleptic-treated patients, but fail to support their clinical usefulness in the subchronic treatment of schizophrenia.

Decreased phospholipase A2 activity in Alzheimer brains.

Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) is a key-enzyme in the metabolism of membrane phospholipids. In cholinergic neurons PLA2 controls the physico-chemical properties of neuronal membranes as well as the breakdown of phosphatidylcholine to produce choline for acetylcholine synthesis. Moreover PLA2 influences the processing and secretion of the amyloid precursor protein, which gives rise to the beta-amyloid peptide, the major component of the amyloid plaque in Alzheimer's disease (AD). In the present study PLA2 activity was investigated in post-mortem brains from 23 patients with AD and 20 nondemented elderly controls. In AD brains PLA2 activity was significantly decreased in the parietal and to a lesser degree in the frontal cortex. Lower PLA2 activity correlated significantly with an earlier onset of the disease, higher counts of neurofibrillary tangles and senile plaques and an earlier age at death, indicating a relationship between abnormally low PLA2 activity and a more severe form of the illness. The present results provide new evidence for a disordered phospholipid metabolism in AD brains and suggest that reduced PLA2 activity may contribute to the cholinergic deficit and to the production of amyloidogenic peptides in the disease.

Increased plasma phospholipase-A2 activity in schizophrenic patients: reduction after neuroleptic therapy.

Phospholipase-A2 (PLA2) is a key enzyme in the metabolism of phospholipids, and it may play an important role in neuronal function and neuronal plasticity. We determined the activity of PLA2 in the plasma of 20 drug-free schizophrenic patients, 6 nonschizophrenic psychiatric patients, and 21 healthy controls. Schizophrenic patients showed significantly higher plasma PLA2 activity than controls, and higher than our nonschizophrenic patients. Seventy percent of the schizophrenics had enzyme activity higher than the highest value from the control group. The increased plasma PLA2 activity in schizophrenics was reduced to the level of the controls after 3 weeks of neuroleptic treatment. These findings warrant further study for possible implications of this increased PLA2 activity in the etiopathology of schizophrenia.

Increased serum phospholipase A2 activity in schizophrenia: a replication study.

Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) is a key enzyme in the metabolism of phospholipids. Because a disordered phospholipid metabolism has frequently been reported in schizophrenia, we investigated the PLA2 activity in serum from 14 drug-free paranoid schizophrenic patients, 20 healthy controls, and 8 nonschizophrenic psychiatric patients. Schizophrenics showed significantly higher PLA2 activity than healthy controls and nonschizophrenic patients. The increment in schizophrenics was not due to increased concentration of pancreatic secretory PLA2, as concerning pancreatic PLA2 no differences were found among the 3 proband groups. The present findings confirm the results of our previous study and suggest that increased serum PLA2 activity might reflect an increment in the intracellular enzyme activity in schizophrenia. In the brain the activation of intracellular PLA2 results in changes in neuronal activity due to alterations in receptor sensitivity and in neurotransmitter metabolism. The possibility that such PLA2-induced mechanisms are involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia should be investigated in further experiments.