Intracerebral Administration of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) Reduces Severity of Cataleptic Freezing in Mice with Genetic Predisposition to Catalepsy

摘要

Single administration of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) into the lateral ventricle of ASC mice (Antidepressant Sensitive Catalepsy), a model of depression-like state, significantly decreased predisposition to cataleptic freezing in these animals. These findings indicate that BDNF can appear as a promising antidepressant of new generation and that ASC mice can be used as an adequate model for investigations of the mechanisms of behavior modification by BDNF.According to WHO data, depressive psychosis is one of four the most severe human diseases; 12.7% males and 21.3% females in developed countries suffer from depressive psychosis. Significant efforts are now directed towards evaluation of the role of BDNF in the pathogenesis of depressive disorders; depression was hypothesized to be associated with neurodegenerative processes in the hippocampus and cortex [6]. BDNF is of special interest, because its serum level is a sensitive marker of antidepressant efficacy in depressive patients [11]. On the other hand, chronic treatment with antidepressant and electroconvulsive therapy providing antidepressant effects increase BDNF expression in the hippocampus and cortex [12,13]. Thus, the possibility of using BDNF as an antidepressant is a promising direction for further investigations.