Joanna Depciuch1, Magdalena Sowa-Kućma2, Paulina Misztak3, Bernadeta Szewczyk3, Gabriel Nowak4, Piotr Pankiewicz5, Magdalena Parlińska-Wojtan1. 1. Institute of Nuclear Physics Polish Academy of Sciences, Kraków, Poland. 2. Department of Neurobiology, Laboratory of Trace Elements Neurobiology, Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Science, Kraków, Poland. Electronic address: sowa@if-pan.krakow.pl. 3. Department of Neurobiology, Laboratory of Trace Elements Neurobiology, Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Science, Kraków, Poland. 4. Department of Neurobiology, Laboratory of Trace Elements Neurobiology, Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Science, Kraków, Poland; Department of Pharmacobiology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Kraków, Poland. 5. Department of Medical Biology and Translational Research, Faculty of Medicine, University of Information Technology and Management, Rzeszów, Poland.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Dysfunctions in neuronal proteins can lead to development of depression. Lipids determine the localization and function of proteins in the cell membrane and thereby regulate synaptic throughput in neurons. The aim of study was to examine changes in the phospholipid-protein balance in the olfactory bulbectomy (OB) model of depression in rats using a Fourier transform infra-red (FTIR) spectroscopy. METHODS: Sprague Dawley rats were subjected to the OB procedure and treated with amitriptyline (AMI, 10mg/kg). The FTIR measurements were performed in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. RESULTS: The obtained results show a decrease in the phospholipids and protein fractions (as well as changes in their secondary structures) in both brain areas of bulbectomized rats. AMI treatment reduced phospholipids' and increased the proteins' brain level, yet did not affect the level of phospholipids or increase the proteins in OB rats. Second derivatives calculated from the FTIR spectra provided information that the proteins (but not phospholipids) in both structures of the OB_AMI rats were normalized after antidepressant treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings prove that the changes in the phospholipid-protein balance in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex may be related to depressive disorders, thus leading to the development of adverse changes in the molecules necessary for the correct functioning of the brain. Furthermore, these results suggest a stability of the structure changes/damage of phospholipids in depression, which are present in brain tissues even after effective pharmacotherapy. This study also shows that an infrared spectroscopy can be applied for monitoring changes in mood disorders.
BACKGROUND: Dysfunctions in neuronal proteins can lead to development of depression. Lipids determine the localization and function of proteins in the cell membrane and thereby regulate synaptic throughput in neurons. The aim of study was to examine changes in the phospholipid-protein balance in the olfactory bulbectomy (OB) model of depression in rats using a Fourier transform infra-red (FTIR) spectroscopy. METHODS:Sprague Dawley rats were subjected to the OB procedure and treated with amitriptyline (AMI, 10mg/kg). The FTIR measurements were performed in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. RESULTS: The obtained results show a decrease in the phospholipids and protein fractions (as well as changes in their secondary structures) in both brain areas of bulbectomized rats. AMI treatment reduced phospholipids' and increased the proteins' brain level, yet did not affect the level of phospholipids or increase the proteins in OBrats. Second derivatives calculated from the FTIR spectra provided information that the proteins (but not phospholipids) in both structures of the OB_AMIrats were normalized after antidepressant treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings prove that the changes in the phospholipid-protein balance in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex may be related to depressive disorders, thus leading to the development of adverse changes in the molecules necessary for the correct functioning of the brain. Furthermore, these results suggest a stability of the structure changes/damage of phospholipids in depression, which are present in brain tissues even after effective pharmacotherapy. This study also shows that an infrared spectroscopy can be applied for monitoring changes in mood disorders.