Depression has been known to reduce the prefrontal activity associated with the execution of certain cognitive tasks, although whether a temporarily depressed or anxious mood in healthy individuals affects the prefron...Depression has been known to reduce the prefrontal activity associated with the execution of certain cognitive tasks, although whether a temporarily depressed or anxious mood in healthy individuals affects the prefrontal blood oxygen level during cognitive tasks is unknown. Combining the measurement of prefrontal activity with near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and the two cognitive tasks, namely the letter version of the verbal fluency test (VFT-l) and the Stroop test, we measured the effect of a depressed or anxious mood and gender on the changes in the prefrontal oxygenated hemoglobin (Oxy-Hb) levels during those cognitive tests in healthy individuals. Depressed mood or anxious mood was assessed by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Thereby we aimed to explore the possibility of NIRS measurement for detecting the early subclinical manifestation of major depression. Moreover, we examined the possible relationships between prefrontal activation and the functional Val66Met polymorphisms of the brain derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) gene and serum BDNF level. As a result, the increased prefrontal Oxy-Hb levels during cognitive tasks were significantly correlated with the severity of depressed mood in males. The course of the prefrontal Oxy-Hb increase was different depending on the cognitive tasks, i.e., the VFT-l or the Stroop test, in both genders. Correlations of BDNF genotype and serum BDNF level with the prefrontal Oxy-Hb levels during those cognitive tasks were negative. Our results suggest that the early subclinical manifestation of depressed mood in males might be detected by the NIRS measurement, which is not correlated with the individual properties of BDNF.展开更多
A role of lower brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) content in the pathogenesis of several mental illnesses has been suggested, especially in major depression. It is not known whether BDNF is involved in the path...A role of lower brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) content in the pathogenesis of several mental illnesses has been suggested, especially in major depression. It is not known whether BDNF is involved in the pathogenesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Herein, we assessed the serum BDNF content and its correlation with symptom severity in a Japanese population with OCD. The serum BDNF levels of OCD patients (n = 39) and healthy controls (n = 37) were measured by ELISA. The severity of OCD symptoms was assessed by the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). The OCD patients’ BDNF levels were significantly higher than those of the controls (17.5 ± 7.3 vs. 12.7 ± 4.7) (p < 0.01). No correlation was observed between the OCD patients’ BDNF levels and their OCD symptoms as scored by the Y-BOCS. For all 76 subjects, the BDI scores were significantly negatively correlated with the serum BDNF levels. Our findings revealed that contrary to previous reports, the serum BDNF content in OCD patients could be higher than that of healthy subjects.展开更多
Social interaction is known to alter behavior and emotional responses to various events. It has been reported that when fear-conditioned animals are put in a fear extinction paradigm with non-fearful conspecifics (pai...Social interaction is known to alter behavior and emotional responses to various events. It has been reported that when fear-conditioned animals are put in a fear extinction paradigm with non-fearful conspecifics (pair-exposure), freezing behavior decreases compared to a solitary situation. However, it remains unclear whether pair-exposure during fear extinction is persistently effective in reducing the freezing response. In this study, we examined whether the effect of pair-exposure could be persistently effective on cued and contextual fear extinction. The reduction of the fear compared to the solitary condition was transiently observed only in the cued fear extinction with no difference in the subsequent recall session. We also found that the correlation between corticosterone levels and freezing behavior during extinction was disrupted in the pair-exposure situation. These results suggest that pair-exposure reduces freezing behavior in cued fear extinction, although this fear response reduction is not persistent. The pair-exposure changed an association between corticosterone levels and freezing behavior during extinction.展开更多
文摘Depression has been known to reduce the prefrontal activity associated with the execution of certain cognitive tasks, although whether a temporarily depressed or anxious mood in healthy individuals affects the prefrontal blood oxygen level during cognitive tasks is unknown. Combining the measurement of prefrontal activity with near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and the two cognitive tasks, namely the letter version of the verbal fluency test (VFT-l) and the Stroop test, we measured the effect of a depressed or anxious mood and gender on the changes in the prefrontal oxygenated hemoglobin (Oxy-Hb) levels during those cognitive tests in healthy individuals. Depressed mood or anxious mood was assessed by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Thereby we aimed to explore the possibility of NIRS measurement for detecting the early subclinical manifestation of major depression. Moreover, we examined the possible relationships between prefrontal activation and the functional Val66Met polymorphisms of the brain derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) gene and serum BDNF level. As a result, the increased prefrontal Oxy-Hb levels during cognitive tasks were significantly correlated with the severity of depressed mood in males. The course of the prefrontal Oxy-Hb increase was different depending on the cognitive tasks, i.e., the VFT-l or the Stroop test, in both genders. Correlations of BDNF genotype and serum BDNF level with the prefrontal Oxy-Hb levels during those cognitive tasks were negative. Our results suggest that the early subclinical manifestation of depressed mood in males might be detected by the NIRS measurement, which is not correlated with the individual properties of BDNF.
文摘A role of lower brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) content in the pathogenesis of several mental illnesses has been suggested, especially in major depression. It is not known whether BDNF is involved in the pathogenesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Herein, we assessed the serum BDNF content and its correlation with symptom severity in a Japanese population with OCD. The serum BDNF levels of OCD patients (n = 39) and healthy controls (n = 37) were measured by ELISA. The severity of OCD symptoms was assessed by the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). The OCD patients’ BDNF levels were significantly higher than those of the controls (17.5 ± 7.3 vs. 12.7 ± 4.7) (p < 0.01). No correlation was observed between the OCD patients’ BDNF levels and their OCD symptoms as scored by the Y-BOCS. For all 76 subjects, the BDI scores were significantly negatively correlated with the serum BDNF levels. Our findings revealed that contrary to previous reports, the serum BDNF content in OCD patients could be higher than that of healthy subjects.
文摘Social interaction is known to alter behavior and emotional responses to various events. It has been reported that when fear-conditioned animals are put in a fear extinction paradigm with non-fearful conspecifics (pair-exposure), freezing behavior decreases compared to a solitary situation. However, it remains unclear whether pair-exposure during fear extinction is persistently effective in reducing the freezing response. In this study, we examined whether the effect of pair-exposure could be persistently effective on cued and contextual fear extinction. The reduction of the fear compared to the solitary condition was transiently observed only in the cued fear extinction with no difference in the subsequent recall session. We also found that the correlation between corticosterone levels and freezing behavior during extinction was disrupted in the pair-exposure situation. These results suggest that pair-exposure reduces freezing behavior in cued fear extinction, although this fear response reduction is not persistent. The pair-exposure changed an association between corticosterone levels and freezing behavior during extinction.
