Objective: The present study sought to determine changes in plasma levels of catecholamine metabolites and serum levels of brain-derived neurotorophic factor (BDNF) among smokers with schizophrenia who were treated with varenicline. Methods: We compared plasma homovanillic acid (HVA) and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) levels and serum BDNF levels across 4 groups, divided as follows: smo...

In this improved method for quantifying 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylethyleneglycol (MHPG) in urine, after a multistep extraction of MHPG and internal standard (iso-MHPG) from 3.0 mL of urine, the compounds are separated on a C18 reversed-phase column and quantified by use of an electro-chemical detector. The isocratic chromatographic separation takes about 16 min. The mobile phase is phosphate buf...

Descending bulbospinal pathways that employ specific neurotransmitter substances are known to be capable of modulating segmental reflex activity in the experimental animal. To determine whether this might also occur in man correlations have been sought between the activity in spinal reflex pathways and the lumbar cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations of 5-hydroxyindolacetic acid (5-HIAA), 3 ...

Remission is the primary goal of treatment for bipolar disorder I (BDI). Metabolites of noradrenaline and dopamine, 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) and homovanillic acid (HVA), respectively, are reduced by treatment with antipsychotics, but whether these phenomena are caused by antipsychotics or by the pathophysiology of BDI is not known. Interactions between brain-derived neurotrophic f...

The aims of this study are to determine how the interval changes of the brain structures in the early stage of first-episode schizophrenia relate to the interval changes in the clinical data, including the clinical symptoms of schizophrenia and catecholaminergic measures (plasma homovanillic acid [HVA] and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol [MHPG]). Regional brain volumes and fractional anisotropy...

BACKGROUND Treatment of the depressive and manic states in bipolar disorder I (BDI) is a challenge for psychiatrists. Despite the recognized importance of the switch phenomenon, the precise mechanisms underlying this process are yet to be shown. We conducted a naturalistic study in two BDI patients to determine whether biological markers (monoamine metabolites and brain-derived neurotrophic fac...

Plasma free homovanillic acid (HVA) and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) were measured before drug treatment in 29 patients diagnosed as having major depression with melancholia and in 18 control subjects. Plasma HVA was significantly elevated in the total group of female melancholic patients when compared with female controls or male melancholics. Most female patients with psychotic mela...

The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is on the rise, especially among psychiatric patients. Acupuncture is considered a safe and effective treatment modality, and traditional Chinese medicine teaches that acupuncture harmonizes the body's energies. Scientific research has found that acupuncture increases a number of central nervous system hormones (ACTH, beta-endorphins, sero...