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Related Experiment Videos

Nitric oxide involvement in depression during interferon-alpha therapy.

Eiji Suzuki1, Yoshiko Yoshida, Akitaka Shibuya

  • 1Department of Psychiatry, Kitasato University School of Medicine, 2-1-1 Asamizodai, Sagamihara, Kanagawa, 228-8520, Japan. e-suzuki@kitasato-u.ac.jp

The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology
|November 8, 2003
PubMed
Summary

Interferon therapy may cause depression by increasing nitric oxide production. This study found higher nitric oxide markers in patients who developed depression during interferon-alpha treatment.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Immunology
  • Hepatology

Background:

  • Interferon therapy is associated with depression.
  • A nitric oxide pathway is a potential mechanism for this side effect.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) and nitric oxide (NO) production in patients with chronic hepatitis C.
  • To determine if altered NO production differentiates patients who develop depression during IFN-alpha treatment.

Main Methods:

  • Plasma nitrate levels, a marker of in vivo nitric oxide production, were measured in 146 patients with chronic hepatitis C before, during, and after IFN-alpha therapy.
  • Patients were monitored for the development of depression.

Main Results:

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  • Nine patients developed depression within the first 4 weeks of therapy, and 8 developed it later.
  • The group developing depression early showed a significant increase in plasma nitrate during IFN-alpha treatment, which returned to baseline post-therapy.
  • No significant plasma nitrate changes were observed in patients who developed depression later or those without psychiatric symptoms.

Conclusions:

  • Nitric oxide production is implicated in the development of depression in a subset of patients receiving interferon-alpha therapy.
  • These findings support the hypothesis of a nitric oxide-related mechanism in some forms of interferon-induced depression.