Title of article
Neuroactive steroid concentrations following metyrapone administration in depressed patients and healthy volunteers
Author/Authors
Rainer Rupprecht، نويسنده , , Andreas Str?hle، نويسنده , , Bettina Hermann، نويسنده , , Flavia di Michele، نويسنده , , Gianfranco Spalletta، نويسنده , , Augusto Pasini، نويسنده , , Florian Holsboer، نويسنده , , Elena Romeo، نويسنده ,
Issue Information
روزنامه با شماره پیاپی سال 1998
Pages
3
From page
912
To page
914
Abstract
Background: There is evidence that treatment with the 11β-hydroxylase inhibitor metyrapone may represent an alternative treatment strategy in major depression. As a consequence of inhibition of cortisol synthesis the overdrive of corticotropin leads to an accumulation of precursor steroids. However, the effects of metyrapone on the concentrations of endogenous neuroactive steroids that modulate ion channels, e.g., the GABAA receptor, have not yet been studied systematically.
Methods: Therefore, we quantified the concentrations of an array of neuroactive steroids following administration of 1.5g metyrapone before and after pretreatment with 1 mg dexamethasone in 19 patients suffering from severe depression in comparison to 13 healthy controls by means of a highly sensitive gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis.
Results: The administration of metyrapone induced a pronouced increase in all neuroactive steroids studied both in patients and controls that was prevented by dexamethasone pretreatment.
Conclusions: Thus, the psychotropic properties of endogenous neuroactive steroids may contribute to the antidepressant properties of metyrapone in the treatment of major depression.
Keywords
Treatment , Neuroactive steroids , metyrapone , depression , Antidepressants
Journal title
Biological Psychiatry
Serial Year
1998
Journal title
Biological Psychiatry
Record number
500656
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