Objective: To review our latest data on changes in neurotransmitter receptors and pro-inflammatory markers in postmortem CNS from subjects with major depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
Methods: The use of human postmortem CNS tissue with in situ radioligand binding with autoradiography and Western blot analyses.
Results: There is a disease specific increase in the density of benzodiazepine binding sites on the GABA receptor in the prefrontal cortex from subjects with bipolar disorder compared to tissue from the same regions from subjects with schizophrenia and control subjects. By contrast, there is decreased [³H]AFDX-384 binding in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder. [³H]4-DAMP binding is decreased in the frontal pole in bipolar disorder but not major depressive disorder. Unlike schizophrenia, [³H]pirenzepine binding was not significantly altered in either disorder in any cortical region examined.
Conclusions: The implications of these findings with regards to understanding the neurobiology of affective disorders will be discussed.