Intravenous tyramine pressor response in depression.

Area of Science:

• Pharmacology
• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry

Background:

• Tyramine is an indirect sympathomimetic amine.
• Depression is associated with alterations in neurotransmitter systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the pressor response to tyramine in patients with primary depressive illness.
• To compare tyramine-dose/pressor-response curves between depressive patients and control subjects.

Main Methods:

• Determined tyramine-dose/pressor-response curves.
• Recruited 27 control subjects and 19 patients with primary depressive illness.

Main Results:

• Significantly lower doses of tyramine were required in the depressive group.
• The dose of tyramine needed to elevate systolic blood pressure by 30 mm Hg was lower in patients with depression.

Conclusions:

• Patients with primary depressive illness exhibit an altered pressor response to tyramine.
• This finding may indicate underlying neurochemical differences in depression.