Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.24869/psyd.2021.491
ASSOCIATION OF BDNF / TRKB AND NGF / TRKA LEVELS IN POSTMORTEM BRAIN WITH MAJOR DEPRESSION AND SUICIDE
Lale Gonenir Erbay
; Inonu University, Department of Psychiatry, Malatya, Turkey
Rifat Karlidag
; Inonu University, Department of Psychiatry, Malatya, Turkey
Mucahit Oruc
; Inonu University, Department of Forensic Medicine, Malatya, Turkey
Yilmaz Cigremis
; Inonu University, Department of Medical Biology and Genetics, Malatya, Turkey
Osman Celbis
; Inonu University, Department of Forensic Medicine, Malatya, Turkey
Abstract
Background: Suicide Attempts are the main complications of Major Depressive Episodes and are difficult to predict. There is
still a lack of knowledge about its neurochemical aspects. There is increasing evidence that Brain-derived neurotrophic factor
(BDNF) and Nerve growth factor (NGF) play a role in the pathophysiology and treatment of depression by binding and activating
cognate receptors Tyrosine Kinase B (TrkB) and Tyrosie Kinase A (TrkA), respectively. This study was conducted to examine
whether BDNF and / or TrkB as well as NGF and / or TrkA expression profiles were changed in the hippocampus of postmortem
brain of individuals with depression who committed suicide.
Subjects and methods: This study was conducted with the brain tissue of 61 victims who died as a result of suicide due to
depression and 25 people who died due to traffic accidents. The psychiatric history of the cases was determined by the psychological
autopsy method. Samples were taken from the hippocampus region of the brain at the forensic medicine institution. After storage
under appropriate conditions, protein and mRNA levels of BDNF, TrkB, NGF and TrkA were determined in the genetics laboratory.
Results: Average age of the suicide group was 30 and the average age of the control group was 24.5. The suicide group
consisted of 70.5% male and 29.5% female cases. There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of age (p=0.062)
and gender (p=0.718). BDNF, NGF, TrkA and TrkB values were found to be lower in the suicide group compared to the control
group and there was a significant difference between the groups (p=<0.001; p=0.001; p=0.001; p=0.011).
Conclusion: Given the importance of BDNF and NGF and their cognate receptors in mediating physiological functions,
including cell survival and synaptic plasticity, our findings regarding decreased expression of BDNF, TrkB, NGF and TrkA in both
protein and mRNA levels of postmortem brains of suicide victims suggests that it may play an important role in the
pathophysiological aspects of its behavior. Further studies in this context may be useful both in understanding the molecular basis of
suicide and in designing therapeutic models targeting these molecular pathways.
Keywords
BDNF; NGF; TrkB; TrkA; suicide; postmortem brain; depression
Hrčak ID:
268095
URI
Publication date:
21.12.2021.
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