Assessing BDNF as a mediator of the effects of exercise on depression

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is associated with neuronal growth and reduced BDNF has been implicated in depression. A recent meta-analysis documented reliable effects of exercise on BDNF levels (Szuhany et al., 2015); although, few studies included participants with mental health conditions. In this study, we examine whether increased exercise was associated with enhanced BDNF response in depressed patients, and whether this change mediated clinical benefits. A total of 29 depressed, sedentary participants were randomized to receive either behavioral activation (BA) plus an exercise or stretching prescription. Blood was collected prior to (resting BDNF levels) and following an exercise test (pre-to post-exercise BDNF change) at four points throughout the study. Participants also completed depression and exercise assessments. BDNF increased significantly across all assessment points (p < 0.001, d = 0.83). Changes in BDNF from pre-to post-exercise were at a moderate effect for the interaction of exercise and time which did not reach significance (p = 0.13, d = 0.53), with a similar moderate, non-significant effect for resting BDNF levels (p = 0.20, d = 0.49). Contrary to hypotheses, change in resting BDNF or endpoint change in BDNF was not associated with changes in depression. In an intervention that included active treatment (BA), we could not verify an independent predictive effect for changes in BDNF across the trial. Overall, this study adds to the literature showing reliable effects of acute exercise on increasing BDNF and extends this research to the infrequently studied depressed population, but does not clarify the mechanism behind exercise benefits for depression. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRY (CLINICALTRIALS.GOV): NCT02176408, "Efficacy of Adjunctive Exercise for the Behavioral Treatment of Major Depression".