Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2014 Jun 3:51:99-104.
doi: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2014.01.012. Epub 2014 Jan 25.

The BDNF Val66Met polymorphism and plasma brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels in Han Chinese patients with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia

Shiou-Lan Chen  1 , Sheng-Yu Lee  2 , Yun-Hsuan Chang  3 , Shih-Heng Chen  4 , Chun-Hsien Chu  4 , Tzu-Yun Wang  5 , Po-See Chen  2 , I-Hui Lee  2 , Yen-Kuang Yang  2 , Jau-Shyong Hong  6 , Ru-Band Lu  7
Affiliations

The BDNF Val66Met polymorphism and plasma brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels in Han Chinese patients with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia

Shiou-Lan Chen et al. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Objective: Brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) is widely distributed in the peripheral and central nervous systems. BDNF and its gene polymorphism may be important in synaptic plasticity and neuron survival, and may become a key target in the physiopathology of several mental illnesses. To elucidate the role of BDNF, we compared the plasma BDNF levels and the BDNF Val66Met gene variants effect in several mental disorders.

Method: We enrolled 644 participants: 177 patients with bipolar I disorder (BP-I), 190 with bipolar II disorder (BP-II), 151 with schizophrenia, and 126 healthy controls. Their plasma BDNF levels and BDNF Val66Met single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) were checked before pharmacological treatment.

Results: Plasma levels of BDNF were significantly lower in patients with schizophrenia than in healthy controls and patients with bipolar disorder (F = 37.667, p<0.001); the distribution of the BDNF Val66Met SNP was not different between groups (χ(2) = 5.289, p = 0.507). Nor were plasma BDNF levels significantly different between Met/Met, Met/Val, and Val/Val carriers in each group, which indicated that the BDNF Val66Met SNP did not influence plasma BDNF levels in our participants. Plasma BDNF levels were, however, significantly negatively correlated with depression scores in patients with bipolar disorder and with negative symptoms in patients with schizophrenia.

Conclusion: We conclude that plasma BDNF profiles in different mental disorders are not affected by BDNF Val66Met gene variants, but by the process and progression of the illness itself.

Keywords: BDNF Val66Met gene; Bipolar disorders; Plasma BDNF; Schizophrenia.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest

All of the authors declared no conflicts of interest.

References

    1. Alderson RF, Alterman AL, Barde YA, Lindsay RM (1990) Brain-derived neurotrophic factor increases survival and differentiated functions of rat septal cholinergic neurons in culture. Neuron 5:297–306. - PubMed
    1. Benazzi F, Akiskal H (2006) The duration of hypomania in bipolar-II disorder in private practice: methodology and validation. Journal of affective disorders 96:189–196. - PubMed
    1. Berman JA, Talmage DA, Role LW (2007) Cholinergic circuits and signaling in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Int Rev Neurobiol 78:193–223. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Brunoni AR, Lopes M, Fregni F (2008) A systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical studies on major depression and BDNF levels: implications for the role of neuroplasticity in depression. The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology / official scientific journal of the Collegium Internationale Neuropsychopharmacologicum 11:1169–1180. - PubMed
    1. Buckley PF, Mahadik S, Pillai A, Terry A Jr. (2007a) Neurotrophins and schizophrenia. Schizophrenia research 94:1–11. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms