A FAMILY STUDY OF BRAIN ABNORMALITIES IN UNIPOLAR DISORDER

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. OBJECTIVE: The proposed research study will examine the possible existence of brain abnormalities in relatives of patients suffering from unipolar disorder. It will attempt to further clarify the meaning of brain abnormalities that have been previously identified in imaging studies that have focused on patients affected by this severe mental illness. As an exploratory aim, it will also examine whether there are specific genes related to brain development that would be related to size of these specific brain regions or NAA levels in unipolar patients and non-affected relatives. RESEARCH PLAN: We will recruit a group of 40 individuals affected with unipolar disorder, 40 siblings of unipolar patients, and 40 healthy individuals without a family history of psychiatric disorders, for a total of 120 persons (ages 18-99), both males and females. The study will be conducted over a three-year period. Unipolar disorder patients, their relatives, and healthy individuals without a family history of psychiatric illness will be matched for age, sex, educational level, and race. METHODS: Patients will be diagnosed according to the DSM-IV criteria. Relatives and healthy controls will undergo the SCID-IV interview, non-patient version, to rule out specific psychiatric diagnosis. A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)/magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) session will be conducted at a 1.5T Phillips MR scanner. Morphometric measurements of specific brain regions involved in mood regulation, as well as neurochemical measures of the levels of N-Acetyl Aspartate (NAA) will be obtained. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: This work has the potential to contribute to elucidate the pathophysiology of unipolar disorder, and contribute to identify trait markers related to vulnerability to this illness.