Study M314
Study name | Godlewska BR 2015 |
Title | Neurochemistry of major depression: a study using magnetic resonance spectroscopy |
Overall design | The aim of this study is to use magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in conjunction with the ultrashort echo time 'SPECIAL' technique to measure cortical levels of GABA, glutamate and glutathione (GSH) levels in unmedicated patients with major depression. The effect of 6-week treatment with the selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor, escitalopram 10 mg daily, was examined. Patients with DSM-IV major depression (depression group, n = 39) and healthy age-matched controls (control group, n = 31) were studied using proton MRS. GABA, glutamate and GSH were measured relative to creatine in a voxel placed in occipital cortex. Due to technical limitations six patients and four healthy controls were excluded from the between-group analysis. Within-subject analysis for the effect of escitalopram treatment was carried out in 27 patients for whom valid data from baseline and 6-week scans were available. Metabolite quantification was reported relative to total creatine as the reference peak. |
Study Type | Type1; Type2; |
Data available | Unavailable |
Organism | Human; |
Categories of depression | Depressive disorder; Depression; Depression; |
Criteria for depression | DSM-IV-TR diagnosed MDD |
Sample size | 60 |
Tissue | Central; Brain; Occipital cortex; |
Platform | MRS; MRS: 3 T Siemens TIM Trio scanner (Erlangen, Germany); |
PMID | |
DOI | |
Citation | Godlewska BR, Near J, Cowen PJ. Neurochemistry of major depression: a study using magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Psychopharmacology 2015;232(3):501-7. |
Metabolite |
