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Enhanced BDNF Signaling is Associated with an Antidepressant-like Behavioral Response and Changes in Brain Monoamines

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Summary

  1. 1.

    Neurotrophins and serotonin have both been implicated in the pathophysiology of depression and in the mechanisms of antidepressant treatments.

  2. 2.

    Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) influences the growth and plasticity of serotonergic (5-HT) neurons via the activation of trkB receptor.

  3. 3.

    Transgenic mice overexpressing the full-length trkB receptor (TrkB.TK+) and showing increased trkB activity in brain, and their wild type (WT) littermates, were injected with the antidepressant fluoxetine or saline, and analyzed behaviorally in the forced swimming test paradigm and biochemically for the concentrations of brain monoamines and their metabolites.

  4. 4.

    The TrkB.TK+ mice displayed increased latency to immobility in the forced swim test, suggesting resistance to behavioral despair.

  5. 5.

    Fluoxetine increased the latency to immobility in wild-type mice to a similar level as seen in the trkB.TK+ mice after saline treatment, but had no further behavioral effect in the swimming behavior of the trkB.TK+ mice.

  6. 6.

    Only minor differences in the levels of brain monoamines and their metabolites were observed between the transgenic and wild-type mice.

  7. 7.

    These data, together with other recent observations, suggest that trkB activation may play a critical role in the behavioral responses to antidepressant drugs in mice.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurobiology, A.I. Virtanen Institute, University of Kuopio, Finland

    Eija Koponen & Tommi Saarelainen

  2. Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Kuopio, Finland

    Ewen MacDonald

  3. Neuroscience Center, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 56, 00014, Finland

    Tomi Rantamäki, Vootele Voikar & Eero Castrén

Authors
  1. Eija Koponen
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  2. Tomi Rantamäki
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  3. Vootele Voikar
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  4. Tommi Saarelainen
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  5. Ewen MacDonald
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  6. Eero Castrén
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Correspondence to Eero Castrén.

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Koponen, E., Rantamäki, T., Voikar, V. et al. Enhanced BDNF Signaling is Associated with an Antidepressant-like Behavioral Response and Changes in Brain Monoamines. Cell Mol Neurobiol 25, 973–980 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10571-005-8468-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10571-005-8468-z

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