Psychiatry Investig.  2014 Jan;11(1):84-88.

Serum Levels of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor at 4 Weeks and Response to Treatment with SSRIs

• Yoshimura
• Kishi T
• Hori H
• Katsuki A
• Sugita-Ikenouchi A
• Umene-Nakano W
• Atake K
• Iwata N
• Nakamura J

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
It is important to predict a response to an antidepressant in early time after starting the antidepressant. We previously reported that serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels in responders to treatment with antidepressants were increased, whereas, those in nonresponders were not. Therefore, we hypothesized that the changes in serum levels of BDNF from baseline (T0) to 4 weeks (T4) after treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) predict the response to the treatment at 8 weeks (T8) in depressed patients. To confirm the hypothesis, we measured serum BDNF at T0, T4, and T8 during the treatment with SSRIs (paroxetine, sertraline, and fluvoxamine).
METHODS
One hundred fifty patients (M/F; 51/99, age; 50.4+/-15.1 years) met major depressive disorder (MDD) using by DSM-IV-TR enrolled in the present study. We measured serum BDNF concentrations at T0, T4, and T8 in patients with MDD treated with SSRIs.
RESULTS
The changes in serum BDNF, age, sex, dose of SSRIs, and HAMD-17 score did not predict the response to SSRIs at T8.
CONCLUSION
These results suggest that the changes in serum BDNF levels from T0 to T4 could not predict the subsequent responses to SSRIs at T8.

Keyword

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor; Serum; Depression; Response; Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor

MeSH Terms

Antidepressive Agents
Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor*
Depression
Depressive Disorder, Major
Humans
Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors
Sertraline
Antidepressive Agents
Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor
Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors
Sertraline