Increased levels of nitric oxide, cortisol and adrenomedullin in patients with chronic schizophrenia


YILMAZ N., HERKEN H., CICEK H. K., CELIK A., Yuerekli M., AKYOL O.

MEDICAL PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE, cilt.16, sa.2, ss.137-141, 2007 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 16 Sayı: 2
  • Basım Tarihi: 2007
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1159/000098367
  • Dergi Adı: MEDICAL PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.137-141
  • İnönü Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Objective: To investigate the levels of serum cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S), nitric oxide (NO) and adrenomedullin (AM) in schizophrenic patients. Subjects and Methods: Sixty-six male patients with chronic schizophrenia and 28 normal male subjects participated in this study. The duration of disease was 145 +/- 120 (mean +/- SD) months. Serum levels of cortisol and DHEA-S were measured by electrochemiluminescence; plasma nitrite levels as an index of NO were measured with the Griess reaction, while plasma AM concentration was measured by using high-performance liquid chromatography. Results: Patients (12.48 +/- 3.2 mu g/dl), as compared to controls (10.31 +/- 3.1 mu g/dl), had higher levels of baseline cortisol (p < 0.05). DHEA-S levels were lower in patients though this did not reach statistical significance (302 +/- 156 mu g/dl compared to control, 322 +/- 96 mu g/dl, p 1 0.05). The mean levels of plasma AM and NO in the schizophrenic group (44.33 +/- 5.07 pmol/l and 36.27 +/- 17.6 mu mol/l) were significantly higher than the levels in the control group (14.56 +/- 4.03 pmol/l and 32.54 +/- 7.14 mu mol/l; p < 0.001, p < 0.03, respectively). There was a positive association between duration of disease and cortisol/DHEA-S ratio and cortisol level. Conclusion: The data show that schizophrenia is associated with abnormal levels of cortisol, DHEA-S, NO and AM. Copyright (C) 2007 S. Karger AG, Basel.