Effects of long-term lithium treatment on monoaminergic functions in major depression
Platelet [ 14C]serotonin uptake, the density of serotonin transporters and 5HT 2 receptors, and 5HT 2 and alpha 2 receptor function in platelets were investigated in 29 outpatients (15 women and 14 men) diagnosed as having a major affective disorder (21 bipolar and 8 unipolar). The data were compare...
Saved in:
Published in | Psychiatry research Vol. 105; no. 1; pp. 33 - 44 |
---|---|
Main Authors | , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Shannon
Elsevier Ireland Ltd
15.12.2001
Elsevier |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
Cover
Loading…
Summary: | Platelet [
14C]serotonin uptake, the density of serotonin transporters and 5HT
2 receptors, and 5HT
2 and alpha
2 receptor function in platelets were investigated in 29 outpatients (15 women and 14 men) diagnosed as having a major affective disorder (21 bipolar and 8 unipolar). The data were compared with data for 26 healthy volunteers matched for age, sex and season. No differences were found in the mean values for the uptake velocity (
V
max) and the affinity (
K
m) of the transport carrier for serotonin between patients and controls. However, female patients had lower
V
max compared to male patients and female control subjects. A positive correlation between plasma lithium and
V
max and a tendency toward a negative correlation between plasma lithium and
K
m was observed. Furthermore, there were no differences in platelet
B
max and
K
d for [
3H]paroxetine binding and
K
d for [
3H]LSD binding between patients and controls. However, there was an increased number of platelet 5-HT
2 receptors and a difference in serotonin-mediated potentiation of platelet ATP secretion between patients compared to controls, especially in women. The findings in the present study suggest that lithium has a net ameliorating impact on serotonin uptake which may render it resistant to change. They also postulate that the effect of lithium may be attained by a dual influence on postsynaptic serotonergic structures, as it increases both the density and the sensitivity of 5-HT
2 receptors. |
---|---|
Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 0165-1781 1872-7123 |
DOI: | 10.1016/S0165-1781(01)00314-6 |