Abstract |
Bipolar disorder is a debilitating disorder of the brain with a lifetime prevalence of 1.0% for bipolar I, 1.1% for bipolar II disorder and 2.4-4.7% for subthreshold bipolar disorder. Medications, including lithium, have demonstrated efficacy in the treatment of bipolar disorder, but their molecular targets and mode of action are largely unknown. A few studies have begun to shed light on potential targets of lithium treatment that may be involved in lithium's therapeutic effect. We have recently conducted a microarray study of rat frontal cortex following chronic treatment (21 days) with lithium. Chronic treatment with lithium led to a significant (at least 1.5-fold) down-regulation of 151 genes and up-regulation of 57 genes. We discuss our results in the context of previous microarray studies involving lithium and gene-association studies to identify key genes associated with chronic lithium treatment. A number of genes associated with bipolar disorder, including Comt ( catechol-O-methyltransferase), Vapa ( vesicle-associated membrane protein-associated protein A), Dtnb ( dystrobrevin beta) and Pkd1 ( polycystic kidney disease 1), were significantly altered in our microarray dataset along with genes associated with synaptic transmission, apoptosis and transport among other functions.
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Authors | S Hossein Fatemi, Teri J Reutiman, Timothy D Folsom |
Journal | Biochemical Society transactions
(Biochem Soc Trans)
Vol. 37
Issue Pt 5
Pg. 1090-5
(Oct 2009)
ISSN: 1470-8752 [Electronic] England |
PMID | 19754458
(Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Review)
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Chemical References |
- Antipsychotic Agents
- Lithium Compounds
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Topics |
- Animals
- Antipsychotic Agents
(pharmacology, therapeutic use)
- Bipolar Disorder
(drug therapy, physiopathology)
- Brain
(physiology)
- Gene Expression Profiling
- Gene Expression Regulation
(drug effects)
- Humans
- Lithium Compounds
(pharmacology, therapeutic use)
- Molecular Sequence Data
- Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis
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