A further exploration of the relationships between immune parameters and the HPA-axis activity in depressed patients

1991 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 313-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Maes ◽  
E. Bosmans ◽  
E. Suy ◽  
B. Minner ◽  
J. Raus
Keyword(s):  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Blast Transformation ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Immune Parameters ◽  
Baseline Cortisol ◽  
Free Cortisol ◽  
Psychotic Features ◽  
Lymphocyte Responses ◽  
Hpa Axis Activity

SYNOPSISIn order to investigate the relationship between the immune apparatus and the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA)-axis activity in depressed patients, we measured in vitro lymphocyte responses to the mitogens Phytohaemagglutinin (PHA), Pokeweed (PWM) and Concanavalin A (Con A) and 8 a.m. baseline cortisol values in plasma, free cortisol excretion in 24 h urine (UFC), basal and post-dexamethasone βendorphin values. Major depressed patients with melancholia/psychotic features exhibited a significantly lower mitogen-induced blast transformation as compared to minor and simple major depressed patients. The lymphocyte responses to the three mitogens were significantly inversely related to baseline cortisol values and postdexamethasone β-endorphin values. The proliferative capacity of lymphocytes to stimulation with PHA and PWM was significantly and positively related to UFC excretion. Up to 45% of the variance in the immune responses to the mitogens was explained by the baseline cortisol, post-dexamethasone β-endorphin and UFC values.

Effects of lithium on the HPA axis in patients with unipolar major depression

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (S2) ◽  
pp. 612-612
Author(s):  
T. Bschor ◽  
D. Ritter ◽  
U. Lewitzka ◽  
M. Bauer ◽  
M. Uhr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Antidepressant Treatment ◽  
Challenge Test ◽  
Tricyclic Antidepressant ◽  
List Type ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Design And Methods ◽  
Hpa Axis Activity ◽  
Drug Free ◽  
Lithium Augmentation

Background(I)Profound alterations of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis regulation were repeatedly shown in depressed patients. The most sensitive challenge test of the HPA axis, the combined dexamethasone/CRH test (DEX/CRH test), shows an overstimulation of ACTH and cortisol in depressed patients. Under tricyclic antidepressant treatment, a normalization of the HPA axis overdrive was found to precede the clinical improvement.(II)Lithium is a well established drug for the treatment of affective disorders. Yet, its exact mode of action and its effects on the HPA axis are still unknown.Design and methodsThree 4-week studies with each 30 acutely depressed patients (unipolar, SCID I confirmed) were conducted. In study 1, patients refractory to a treatment trial with an antidepressant of at least four weeks were treated with lithium augmentation. In study 2 and 3, drug free patients were treated with lithium monotherapy or citalopram monotherapy respectively. Weekly HAM-D ratings were performed. In each study, the DEX/CRH test was conducted right before and four weeks after initiation of the pharmacotherapy.ResultsAll three pharmacological strategies showed good antidepressive efficacy. Both lithium monotherapy and lithium augmentation led to a (for most parameters significant) increase in the HPA axis activity. In contrast, citalopram monotherapy resulted in a decrease of the hormone response to the DEX/CRH test.

Impaired Lymphocyte Stimulation by Mitogens in Severely Depressed Patients

1989 ◽  
Vol 155 (6) ◽  
pp. 793-798 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michaël Maes ◽  
Eugéne Bosmans ◽  
Eduard Suy ◽  
Bob Minner ◽  
Jef Raus
Keyword(s):  
Major Depression ◽  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Concanavalin A ◽  
Canonical Correlation ◽  
Urine Samples ◽  
Lymphocyte Stimulation ◽  
Pokeweed Mitogen ◽  
Con A ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Lymphocyte Responses

To investigate the relationships between the immune apparatus, major depression, and HPA-axis and noradrenergic activity, the authors measured the lymphocyte stimulation responses to the mitogens phytohaemagglutinin (PHA), pokeweed mitogen (PWM) and concanavalin A (CON A), post-dexamethasone Cortisol (DST) values and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) excretion in 24-hour urine samples from 48 patients. We found that lymphocyte responses to PHA and PWM in melancholic and psychotic depressives were significantly lower than in minor depressives. The lymphocyte responses to PHA, PWM and CON A showed significantly negative correlations with age, DST results and HRSD score. Responses to PHA were significantly negatively correlated with MHPG excretion. Up to ±33% of the variance in the three mitogenic lymphocyte responses could be explained by canonical correlation with age, DST results and MHPG values.

scholarly journals Interactions between the neuropeptide Y system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis

1999 ◽  
pp. 130-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
R Krysiak ◽  
E Obuchowicz ◽  
ZS Herman
Keyword(s):  
Neuropeptide Y ◽  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Animal Species ◽  
In Vivo Studies ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal ◽  
Hpa Axis Activity ◽  
Pituitary Adrenal Axis

The aim of this paper is to review the present knowledge of interactions between the neuropeptide Y (NPY) system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. On the basis of in vitro and in vivo studies of various animal species, we review the effects of NPY on all levels of HPA axis activity. We also describe the effects of glucocorticosteroids on the NPY system in the hypothalamus, including interactions between glucocorticosteroids and insulin. On the basis of available literature, we discuss the role of these interactions in the control of food intake and in the pathogenesis of obesity.

Higher HPA axis activity in healthy participants compared to depressed patients after MR blockade: Evidence for attenuated MR function in depression

2015 ◽  
Vol 61 ◽  
pp. 54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Hinkelmann ◽  
Julian Hellmann-Regen ◽  
Katja Wingenfeld ◽  
Linn Kuehl ◽  
Marie Mews ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Hpa Axis Activity ◽  
Healthy Participants

Sleep deprivation and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity in depressed patients

2001 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 239-247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cornelius Schüle ◽  
Thomas Baghai ◽  
Peter Zwanzger ◽  
Christo Minov ◽  
Frank Padberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sleep Deprivation ◽  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Hpa Axis Activity

Plasma soluble interleukin-2-receptor in depression: relationships to plasma neopterin and serum IL-2 concentrations and HPA-axis activity

1995 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 397-403 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Maes ◽  
E Bosmans ◽  
S Scharpé ◽  
P D'Hondt ◽  
R Desnyder
Keyword(s):  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Interleukin 2 ◽  
Severity Of Illness ◽  
Normal Serum ◽  
Cell Mediated Immunity ◽  
Interleukin 2 Receptor ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Measurable Serum ◽  
Soluble Interleukin 2 Receptor ◽  
Hpa Axis Activity

SummaryThe present study examined the plasma concentration of the soluble interleukin-2-receptor (sIL-2R) in depressed subjects in relation to hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis function and plasma neopterin and serum IL-2 concentrations. Plasma sIL-2R concentration was significantly higher in depressed patients (n = 47) than in controls (n = 19). There were no significant correlations between plasma sIL-2R and severity of illness. In the depressed subjects, there was a highly significant relationship between plasma sIL-2R and neopterin concentrations. Depressed patients with pathologically increased plasma neopterin levels had significantly higher plasma sIL-2R values than those with normal serum neopterin. There were no significant relationships between plasma sIL-2R and indices of HPA-axis function in depression. There was no significant effect of dexamethasone administration on sIL-2R levels. Significantly more depressed subjects had measurable serum IL-2 levels than normal controls. Our data support the notion that a moderate activation of cell-mediated immunity may play a role in the pathophysiology of depression.

Barbiturate inhibition of lymphocyte function

1982 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 254-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward A. Neuwelt ◽  
Kenji Kikuchi ◽  
Suellen A. Hill ◽  
Peter Lipsky ◽  
Eugene Frenkel
Keyword(s):  
Culture Medium ◽  
Lymphocyte Activation ◽  
Blast Transformation ◽  
Lymphocyte Function ◽  
Barbiturate Coma ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Long Acting ◽  
Lymphocyte Responses ◽  
Dose Dependent

✓ The present studies evaluated the effect of phenobarbital, pentobarbital, and thiopental at concentrations comparable to those attained during therapeutic barbiturate-induced coma, on in vitro mitogen-induced lymphocyte activation. Lymphocytes from normal volunteers were incubated for 72 hours in culture medium containing mitogen (phytohemagglutinin) and a range of concentrations of the barbiturates (5 to 833 µg/ml). Three parameters of lymphocyte activation (mitogen-induced blast transformation, 3H-thymidine incorporation, and cell proliferation) were all suppressed by the barbiturates. The suppression was dose-dependent. The greatest suppression was caused by the short-acting barbiturate, thiopental. Lymphocyte responses were much less affected by the long-acting barbiturate, phenobarbital. The intermediateacting barbiturate, pentobarbital, was also intermediate in its ability to inhibit lymphocyte activation. The two- to threefold difference between the effects of thiopental and pentobarbital on lymphocyte function may have direct clinical relevance, since it is primarily these two agents that are employed to induce therapeutic “barbiturate coma.” Since lymphocyte suppression appears to be much more marked in the presence of thiopental, these observations support a role for the other barbiturates in programs of induced coma.

The Cortisol and ACTH response to Dex/CRH testing in Women with and without Perimenopausal Depression

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gioia M Guerrieri ◽  
Rivka Ben Dor ◽  
Xiaobai Li ◽  
Shau-Ming Wei ◽  
Pedro E Martinez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Rating Scales ◽  
Stressful Life Events ◽  
Urinary Free Cortisol ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Free Cortisol ◽  
And Control ◽  
Hpa Axis Activity

Abstract Background Abnormalities in the hypothalamic pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis are frequent accompaniments of depression, and studies have documented the role of stress and stressful life events in the ontogeny of perimenopausal depressions (PMD). Since HPA axis function in women is further modulated by both aging and ovarian steroids, it is possible that a dysregulated HPA axis contributes to the increased risk of PMD. Objective We examined HPA axis function in perimenopausal women with and without depression using the combined dexamethasone-CRH (Dex/CRH) test. Methods Dex/CRH tests were performed on 20 women with PMD and 20 women who were also perimenopausal but without current or past depression (control women). Main outcome measures were plasma levels of cortisol and ACTH and 24-hour urinary free cortisol. Five women took chronic stable medications, otherwise all women were medically healthy, and both groups were comparable with respect to reproductive stage and age. Standardized symptom rating scales were administered to each woman prior to Dex/CRH testing. Results No group differences were present in either baseline or stimulated ACTH and cortisol secretion. Baseline plasma measures of estradiol, progesterone and 24-hour UFC levels similarly did not differ in PMD and control women. Discussion Despite reports of increased stress responsiveness in PMD, we observed no abnormalities of HPA axis activity associated with PMD compared with women without depression. These findings suggest that PMD is not uniformly associated with HPA dysregulation and could reflect underlying pathophysiologic processes that are distinct from women with non-reproductive-related depressions.

Immune disturbances in severely depressed patients: relationship with Cortisol secretion

1990 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-7
Author(s):  
M. Maes ◽  
E. Bosmans ◽  
E. Suy ◽  
B. Minner ◽  
J. Rausn
Keyword(s):  
Major Depression ◽  
Concanavalin A ◽  
Severity Of Illness ◽  
Pokeweed Mitogen ◽  
Cortisol Secretion ◽  
Con A ◽  
Depressed Patients ◽  
Psychotic Features ◽  
Lymphocyte Responses

The mitogen induced lymphocyte responses were measured in 33 depressed patients categorized according to the DSM-III into minor (300.40, 309.00), simple major (296.X2) and major depression with melancholia and/or psychotic features (296.X3, 296.X4). Three distinct mitogens were used, i.e. phytohemaglutinin (PHA), pokeweed mitogen (PWM) and concanavalin A (CON A). We found that major depressives with associated features showed significantly lower mitogen induced lymphocyte responses to PHA and PWM as compared to all other depressed patients. The severity of illness was significantly inversely related to the lymphocyte responses to PHA. Cortisol nonsuppressors exhibited significantly lower PHA and PWM induced lymphocyte responses as compared with suppressors. There were significant and negative correlations between the postdexamethasone Cortisol values and the PHA and PWM stimulated lymphocyte responses.

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