Elsevier

Brain Research Bulletin

Volume 78, Issue 6, 30 March 2009, Pages 267-269
Brain Research Bulletin

Review
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor, stress and depression: A minireview

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brainresbull.2008.12.002Get rights and content

Abstract

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a member of the nerve growth factor family, and is widely expressed in the adult mammalian brain. Besides its well known neuroprotective activity after traumatic brain injury the evidences regarding its activity dependent release by the pathophysiology of major depression are rapidly replicating. Considering the data that stress plays an important role by the development of depression which is characterized with prominent hippocampal cell death, as well as the well known neuroprotective effects of BDNF, we aimed to investigate the link between the BDNF, stress and depression. Thus we prepared a minireview in order to evaluate the neuroprotective role of BDNF by psychiatric disorders which are characterized with prominent neuronal cell death.

Section snippets

The structure and function of brain-derived neurotrophic factor

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a small dimeric neuroprotective protein and a member of neurotrophin family, which is widely expressed in the mammalian adult brain [21]. It plays critical role in development and maintenance of peripheral nervous system (PNS) and central nervous system (CNS), neuronal survival and proliferation [40]. The proposed mechanisms include the enhancing effect on the neuronal sprouting, synaptic reorganisation, and neurogenesis [32], [35], [45]. BDNF mediate

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor and stress-related cell death mechanisms

Both acute and chronic stress has been shown to decrease the BDNF expression in various animal models. There is also evidence showing that prolonged stress lead to atrophy and cell loss in limbic brain structures in animals [6]. The mechanism for such effect is mediated by mineralocorticoid (MR), glucocorticoid (GR) and N-methyl-d-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptors in the limbic system, which appears critical for neuronal activity, stress responsiveness, and behavioral programming and adaptation [6]

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor and depression

Depression is one of the most frequent of mood disorders by which the dysfunction of neuroplasticity or remodeling play a significant role [47], [28]. This hypothesis is supported by preclinical and clinical investigations demonstrating that stress and depression lead to reduction of the total volume of the hippocampus and to cell loss in the limbic system [6], [20], [34], [12]. The proposed cell death mechanisms of depression include the impairment of neurotrophic mechanism(s), elevated

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor and genetic risk for depression

Recent studies indicated that functional polymorphism of the BDNF gene, which includes a substitution a valine for a methionine aminoacid at the codon 66 (val66met) as a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), plays an important role by a predisposition to depression [43], [44], [2], [53] and cognitive deficits [8], [19].

As BDNF is related to memory and stress-related brain atrophy [40], [52], the BDNF genetic polymorphism may be a candidate for the study of memory impairment and brain atrophy in

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