Title |
Elevated levels of kynurenic acid in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with bipolar disorder
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Published in |
Journal of Psychiatry & Neuroscience : JPN, May 2010
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DOI | 10.1503/jpn.090180 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Sara K. Olsson, Martin Samuelsson, Peter Saetre, Leif Lindström, Erik G. Jönsson, Conny Nordin, Göran Engberg, Sophie Erhardt, Mikael Landén |
Abstract |
Patients with schizophrenia show elevated brain levels of the neuroactive tryptophan metabolite kynurenic acid (KYNA). This astrocyte-derived mediator acts as a neuroprotectant and modulates sensory gating and cognitive function. We measured the levels of KYNA in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with bipolar disorder and healthy volunteers to investigate the putative involvement of KYNA in bipolar disorder. We obtained CSF by lumbar puncture from 23 healthy men and 31 euthymic men with bipolar disorder. We analyzed the samples using high-performance liquid chromatography. Patients with bipolar disorder had increased levels of KYNA in their CSF compared with healthy volunteers (1.71 nM, standard error of the mean [SEM] 0.13 v. 1.13 nM, SEM 0.09; p = 0.002. The levels of KYNA were positively correlated with age among bipolar patients but not healthy volunteers. The influence of ongoing drug treatment among patients cannot be ruled out. We conducted our study during the euthymic phase of the disease. Brain KYNA levels are increased in euthymic men with bipolar disorder. In addition, KYNA levels increased with age in these patients. These findings indicate shared mechanisms between bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Elevated levels of brain KYNA may provide further insight to the pathophysiology and progression of bipolar disorder. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
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Unknown | 1 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
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Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 1 | 100% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
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United States | 1 | 1% |
Unknown | 97 | 99% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Ph. D. Student | 18 | 18% |
Student > Bachelor | 13 | 13% |
Researcher | 11 | 11% |
Student > Master | 11 | 11% |
Other | 8 | 8% |
Other | 11 | 11% |
Unknown | 26 | 27% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
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Medicine and Dentistry | 24 | 24% |
Neuroscience | 14 | 14% |
Psychology | 12 | 12% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 5 | 5% |
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 4 | 4% |
Other | 7 | 7% |
Unknown | 32 | 33% |