Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0011570 (depression)
 172,036 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Major alterations of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) system that can be reversed by successful antidepressant therapy are often seen in depressed patients. Persuasive evidence points to the involvement of a dysfunctional glucocorticoid receptor (GR) system in these changes. Support for this also comes from studies of transgenic mice that express an antisense RNA, complementary to the GR mRNA, and have numerous neuroendocrine characteristics of human depression as well as altered behaviour. Many of these neuroendocrine and behavioural characteristics of the transgenic mice can be reversed by antidepressants. A possible explanation for this is that the antidepressant-induced increase in GRs renders the HPA axis more sensitive to glucocorticoid feedback. This new insight into antidepressant drug action suggests a novel approach to the development of antidepressant drugs.
 ...
PMID:Implication of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in the physiopathology of depression. 1517 95

Evidence suggests that individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have an enhanced sensitization of the hypothalamic--pituitary--adrenocortical (HPA) axis. However, few studies in adolescents have been performed. Fourteen sexually abused adolescent inpatients with DSM-IV PTSD (12 female, two male; mean +/- SD age, 16.2 +/- 1.9 years) were compared with 14 adolescent hospitalized controls (11 female, three male; mean age, 15.7 +/- 2.0 years). All subjects underwent a standard dexamethasone suppression test (DST, 1 mg given orally at 2300 h) five days after admission. Baseline blood samples were obtained at 0800 h, and the following day, adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) and cortisol levels were measured at 0800, 1600, and 2300 h. Clinical assessment included the Impact of Event Scale, Stanford Acute Stress Reaction Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory, and Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations. Post-DST ACTH levels were significantly lower in PTSD than in control adolescents (at 0800 h: P < 0.005; at 1600 h: P < 0.001; at 2300 h: P < 0.05). In patients, post-DST cortisol levels were reduced but not significantly. No correlations were found between ACTH and cortisol levels and time elapsed since trauma. These results demonstrate that sexually abused adolescents with PTSD show ACTH hypersuppression to DST suggesting enhanced glucocorticoid receptor sensitivity in the pituitary.
 ...
PMID:Increased adrenocorticotropin suppression following dexamethasone administration in sexually abused adolescents with posttraumatic stress disorder. 1528 7

Central glucocorticoid receptor function may be reduced in depression. In vivo modelling of glucocorticoid receptor underfunctionality would assist in understanding its role in depressive illness. The role of glucocorticoid receptors in modulating 5-HT(2A) receptor expression and function in the central nervous system (CNS) is presently unclear, but 5-HT(2A) receptor function also appears altered in depression. With the aid of RNAse H accessibility mapping, we have developed a 21-mer antisense oligodeoxynucleotide (5'-TAAAAACAGGCTTCTGATCCT-3', termed GRAS-5) that showed 56% reduction in glucocorticoid receptor mRNA and 80% down-regulation in glucocorticoid receptor protein in rat C6 glioma cells. Sustained delivery to rat cerebral ventricles in slow release biodegradable polymer microspheres produced a marked decrease in glucocorticoid receptor mRNA and protein in hypothalamus (by 39% and 80%, respectively) and frontal cortex (by 26% and 67%, respectively) 5 days after a single injection, with parallel significant up-regulation of 5-HT(2A) receptor mRNA expression (13%) and binding (21%) in frontal cortex. 5-HT(2A) receptor function, determined by DOI-head-shakes, showed a 55% increase. These findings suggest that central 5-HT(2A) receptors are, directly or indirectly, under tonic inhibitory control by glucocorticoid receptor.
 ...
PMID:Increased 5-HT2A receptor expression and function following central glucocorticoid receptor knockdown in vivo. 1547 47

A few examples of hypothalamic, peptidergic disorders leading to clinical signs and symptoms are presented in this review. Increased activity of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) neurons in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) and decreased activity of the vasopressin neurons in the biological clock and of the thyroxine-releasing hormone (TRH) neurons in the PVN contribute to the signs and symptoms of depression. In men, the central nucleus of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTc) is about twice as large and contains twice as many somatostatin neurons as in women. In transsexuals this sex difference is reversed, pointing to a role of this structure in gender. Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) neurons are formed in the fetal olfactory placade and migrate along the terminal nerve fibers into the hypothalamus. In Kallmann's syndrome the migration process of the LHRH (gonadotropin-releasing hormone) neurons is aborted, which explains the joint occurrence of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and anosmia in this syndrome. In postmenopausal women, the neurons of the infundibular nucleus hypertrophy and become hyperactive because of the disappearance of the estrogen feedback and contain hyperactive peptidergic neurons. Climacteric flushes may be caused by hyperactivity of the neurokinin-B or LHRH neurons in this nucleus. The hypocretin (orexin) neurons in the perifornical area are involved in sleep. In narcolepsy with cataplexy, a loss of these neurons, probably due to an autoimmune process, is found. Obese subjects with a mutation in the gene that encodes for leptin, the preproghrelin gene, or the alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) gene have been described. Decreased numbers and activity of the oxytocin neurons in the PVN may be responsible for the absence of satiety in Prader-Willi syndrome. Moreover, a glucocorticoid receptor polymorphism is associated with obesitas and dysregulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis. In contrast, two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the AGRP gene have been associated with anorexia nervosa.
 ...
PMID:Neuropeptides in hypothalamic neuronal disorders. 1554 16

The stress hormone-regulating hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis has been implicated in the causality as well as the treatment of depression. To investigate a possible association between genes regulating the HPA axis and response to antidepressants and susceptibility for depression, we genotyped single-nucleotide polymorphisms in eight of these genes in depressed individuals and matched controls. We found significant associations of response to antidepressants and the recurrence of depressive episodes with single-nucleotide polymorphisms in FKBP5, a glucocorticoid receptor-regulating cochaperone of hsp-90, in two independent samples. These single-nucleotide polymorphisms were also associated with increased intracellular FKBP5 protein expression, which triggers adaptive changes in glucocorticoid receptor and, thereby, HPA-axis regulation. Individuals carrying the associated genotypes had less HPA-axis hyperactivity during the depressive episode. We propose that the FKBP5 variant-dependent alterations in HPA-axis regulation could be related to the faster response to antidepressant drug treatment and the increased recurrence of depressive episodes observed in this subgroup of depressed individuals. These findings support a central role of genes regulating the HPA axis in the causality of depression and the mechanism of action of antidepressant drugs.
 ...
PMID:Polymorphisms in FKBP5 are associated with increased recurrence of depressive episodes and rapid response to antidepressant treatment. 1556 10

Regardless of etiology, all cases of endogenous Cushing's syndrome are due to increased production of cortisol by the adrenal gland. Most are caused by adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH)-secreting pituitary adenomas. Alternatively, the glucocorticoid excess may be due to adrenal neoplasia or to ectopic ACTH-secreting tumors. Cushing's syndrome is characterized by endocrine and metabolic alterations such as truncal obesity, hypertension, weakness, amenorrhea, hyperglycemia, osteoporosis and depression. Unless treated, the disease is associated with high morbidity, and ultimately, mortality. Depending on the etiology of Cushing's syndrome two different treatment modalities are possible: reduction of pituitary ACTH production or reduction of adrenocortical cortisol secretion. In the absence of efficient drug therapy, transsphenoidal resection of the pituitary adenoma is the primary treatment of choice for the reduction of ACTH secretion. In the last years there was much progress in understanding the molecular mechanisms that control the function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Thus, new insights made it possible to identify potential drug targets for the treatment of Cushing's syndrome. The present article reviews different drug targets and therapeutic options including drugs that control the central ACTH regulation, e.g. by modulating signaling pathways and transcriptional regulation of ACTH biosynthesis, corticotrophin releasing hormone (CRH) or glucocorticoid receptor antagonists, inhibitors of glucocorticoid synthesis, ketoconazole, somatostatin and dopamine analogs. Some of these substances might be useful for the treatment of Cushing's syndrome.
 ...
PMID:New perspectives in the treatment of Cushing's syndrome. 1557 85

The induction of hippocampal long-term synaptic plasticity is exquisitely sensitive to behavioral stress, but the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. We report here that hippocampal slices prepared from adult rats that had experienced unpredictable and inescapable restraint tail-shock stress showed marked impairments of long-term potentiation (LTP) in the CA1 region. The same stress promoted the induction of long-term depression (LTD). These effects were prevented when the animals were given the glucocorticoid receptor antagonist 11beta, 17beta-11[4-(dimethylamino)phenyl]-17-hydroxy-17-(1-propynyl)-estra-4-9-dien-3-one before the stress. Immunoblotting analyses revealed that stress induced a profound and prolonged extracellular signal-regulated kinase/mitogen-activated protein kinase (ERK1/2 MAPK) hyperphosphorylation through small GTPase Ras, Raf-1, and MAPK kinase 1/2 (MEK1/2). Furthermore, the stress effects were obviated by the intrahippocampal injection of specific inhibitors of MEK1/2 (U0126), protein kinase C (bisindolylmaleimide I), tyrosine kinase (K252a), and BDNF antisense oligonucleotides. These results suggest that the effects of stress on LTP and LTD originate from the corticosterone-induced sustained activation of ERK1/2-coupled signaling cascades.
 ...
PMID:Behavioral stress modifies hippocampal synaptic plasticity through corticosterone-induced sustained extracellular signal-regulated kinase/mitogen-activated protein kinase activation. 1559 Sep 19

Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is a hallmark of major depressive disorder. A number of studies have shown that this dysregulation is correlated with impaired forebrain glucocorticoid receptor (GR) function. To determine whether a primary, acquired deficit in forebrain GR signaling is an etiologic factor in the pathogenesis of depression, we generated a line of mice with time-dependent, forebrain-specific disruption of GR (FBGRKO). These mice develop a number of both physiological and behavioral abnormalities that mimic major depressive disorder in humans, including hyperactivity of the HPA axis, impaired negative feedback regulation of the HPA axis and, increased depression-like behavior. Importantly, a number of these abnormalities are normalized by chronic treatment with the tricyclic antidepressant, imipramine. Our findings suggest that imipramine's proposed activities on forebrain GR function are not essential for its antidepressant effects, and that alteration in GR expression may play a causative role in disease onset of major depressive disorder.
 ...
PMID:Acquired deficit of forebrain glucocorticoid receptor produces depression-like changes in adrenal axis regulation and behavior. 1562 60

The objective of the study was to investigate the impact of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) activation on interrenal steroidogenesis in rainbow trout. To this end, fish were fed AhR agonist (beta-naphthoflavone (BNF): 10 mg/kg body mass/day) and antagonist (alpha-naphthoflavone (ANF): 10 mg/kg body mass/day) either singly or in combination (ABNF) for 5 days to elucidate the mechanisms involved in AhR-mediated depression of cortisol production. Liver AhR protein expression was significantly elevated only with ABNF, but not with BNF and ANF compared to the control group. However, all three treatments (BNF, ANF, and ABNF) significantly elevated cytochrome P450 1A1 (CYP1A1) gene and protein expression in the kidney and liver, respectively. Also, these three treatment groups had significantly depressed ACTH-stimulated cortisol production in vitro compared to the control group. This attenuation of interrenal steroidogenesis corresponded with a lower mRNA abundance of steroidogenic acute regulatory (StAR) protein and cytochrome P450 cholesterol side chain cleavage enzyme (P450scc), but not 11beta-hydroxylase. Furthermore, in vitro incubation of head kidney pieces with 7-3H-pregnenolone failed to show any treatment effects on pathways downstream of P450scc, except for a significantly higher conversion to progesterone in the BNF and ANF groups. Plasma cortisol and glucose levels showed no significant change between the treated groups and control, but liver and brain glucocorticoid receptor (GR) protein expression was higher in the BNF group, and ANF abolished this response. Taken together, both BNF and ANF impaired cortisol production, and the mechanism may involve attenuation of StAR and P450scc, the rate limiting steps in steroidogenesis. Overall, endocrine disruption by xenobiotics acting via AhR includes impaired cortisol biosynthesis and abnormal cortisol target tissue GR responses in rainbow trout.
 ...
PMID:Ah Receptor-mediated impairment of interrenal steroidogenesis involves StAR protein and P450scc gene attenuation in rainbow trout. 1563 47

A number of lines of evidence suggest that alterations in forebrain glucocorticoid receptor (GR)-mediated regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis may be involved in the etiology of depression. The level of expression of GR in the hippocampus is highly correlated with HPA axis activity, and a number of animal models of depression are associated with altered forebrain GR expression. We have generated a line of mice with a conditional, forebrain-specific deletion of GR (FBGRKO) to determine if a primary deficit in forebrain GR signaling is an etiologic factor in the pathogenesis of depression. These mice should prove to be valuable for identifying GR target genes in major depressive disorder (MDD) and testing pharmacological agents for efficacy in this disorder.
 ...
PMID:Genetic dissection of stress response pathways in vivo. 1566 37


<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next >>