Are serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor concentrations related to brain structure and psychopathology in late childhood and early adolescence?

Author(s):Show less -

de Araujo, Celia Maria ^{[1, 2]} ; Swardfager, Walter ^{[3, 4]} ; Zugman, Andre ^{[1, 2]} ; Cogo-Moreira, Hugo ^[1] ; Belangero, Sintia I. ^{[5, 1, 2]} ; Ota, Vanessa K. ^{[5, 2]} ; Spindola, Leticia M. ^{[5, 2]} ; Hakonarson, Hakon ^[6] ; Pellegrino, Renata ^[6] ; Gadelha, Ary ^{[1, 2]} ; Salum, Giovanni A. ^{[7, 1]} ; Pan, Pedro M. ^{[1, 2]} ; Mansur, Rodrigo B. ^{[8, 9]} ; Hoexter, Marcelo ^{[10, 1]} ; Picon, Felipe ^{[7, 1]} ; Sato, Joao R. ^{[1, 11]} ; Brietzke, Elisa ^[2] ; Grassi-Oliveira, Rodrigo ^[12] ; Rohde, Luis A. P. ^{[7, 1]} ; Miguel, Euripedes C. ^{[8, 1]} ; Bressan, Rodrigo A. ^[1] ; Jackowski, Andrea P. ^{[1, 2]}

Affiliation:Show less -

^[1] Natl Inst Dev Psychiat Children & Adolescent INCT, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[2] Queens Univ, Sch Med, Dept Psychiat, Kingston, ON - Canada

^[3] Univ Toronto, Dept Pharmacol & Toxicol, Toronto, ON - Canada

^[4] Sunnybrook Res Inst, Hurvitz Brain Sci Program, Toronto, ON - Canada

^[5] Univ Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Morphol & Genet, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[6] Childrens Hosp Philadelphia, Ctr Appl Genom, Philadelphia, PA 19104 - USA

^[7] Univ Fed Rio Grande do Sul, Hosp Clin Porto Alegre, Dept Psychiat, Porto Alegre, RS - Brazil

^[8] Univ Toronto, Dept Psychiat, Toronto, ON - Canada

^[9] Univ Toronto, Mood Disorders Psychopharmacol Unit, Toronto, ON - Canada

^[10] Univ Sao Paulo, Dept & Inst Psychiat, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[11] Univ Fed ABC, Math & Stat Inst, Santo Andre, SP - Brazil

^[12] Pontif Catholic Univ Rio Grande Do Sul, Dev Cognit Neurosci Lab DCNL, Porto Alegre, RS - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: CNS SPECTRUMS; v. 25, n. 6, p. 790-796, DEC 2020.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Objective Mental disorders can have a major impact on brain development. Peripheral blood concentrations of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) are lower in adult psychiatric disorders. Serum BDNF concentrations and BDNF genotype have been associated with cortical maturation in children and adolescents. In 2 large independent samples, this study tests associations between serum BDNF concentrations, brain structure, and psychopathology, and the effects of BDNF genotype on BDNF serum concentrations in late childhood and early adolescence. Methods Children and adolescents (7-14 years old) from 2 cities (n = 267 in Porto Alegre; n = 273 in Sao Paulo) were evaluated as part of the Brazilian high-risk cohort (HRC) study. Serum BDNF concentrations were quantified by sandwich ELISA. Genotyping was conducted from blood or saliva samples using the SNParray Infinium HumanCore Array BeadChip. Subcortical volumes and cortical thickness were quantified using FreeSurfer. The Development and Well-Being Behavior Assessment was used to identify the presence of a psychiatric disorder. Results Serum BDNF concentrations were not associated with subcortical volumes or with cortical thickness. Serum BDNF concentration did not differ between participants with and without mental disorders, or between Val homozygotes and Met carriers. Conclusions No evidence was found to support serum BDNF concentrations as a useful marker of developmental differences in brain and behavior in early life. Negative findings were replicated in 2 of the largest independent samples investigated to date. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 14/07280-1 - Search for genetic markers of risk, progression and response to treatment
• Grantee: Síntia Iole Nogueira Belangero
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 13/08531-5 - High risk cohort study for psychiatric disorders in childhood: 3-year follow-up neuroimaging study
• Grantee: Andrea Parolin Jackowski
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 16/04983-7 - Neuroimaging, genomics, transcriptomics and epigenomics: dealing with big data toward an integrative model of mental disorders
• Grantee: Jair de Jesus Mari
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - eScience and Data Science Program - Regular Program Grants
• FAPESP's process: 14/50917-0 - INCT 2014: developmental psychiatry for children and adolescents
• Grantee: Eurípedes Constantino Miguel Filho
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants