Paradoxical metabolic response of the human brain to a single electroconvulsive shock

• Published in: Neuroscience letters Vol. 254; no. 1; pp. 41 - 44
• Main Authors: Sermet, Eric, Grégoire, Marie-Claude, Galy, Gérard, Lavenne, Franck, Pierre, Christian, Veyre, Laurent, Lebars, Didier, Cinotti, Luc, Comar, Dominique, Dalery, Jean, Bobillier, Pierre
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Shannon Elsevier Ireland Ltd 18-09-1998; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adult; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Biological and medical sciences; Blood Pressure; Body Temperature; Brain - metabolism; Brain - physiology; Brain protein synthesis; Carbon Radioisotopes; Depression; Depression - therapy; Electroconvulsive Therapy; Female; Heart Rate; Human depression; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Methionine - blood; Methionine - metabolism; Middle Aged; Mood disorders; Nerve Tissue Proteins - metabolism; Positron emission tomography; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Tomography, Emission-Computed; Brain protein synthesis; Human depression; Electroconvulsive therapy; Positron emission tomography; Mood disorder; Human; Protein synthesis; Central nervous system; Depression; Brain (vertebrata); Emission tomography
• ISSN: 0304-3940; 1872-7972
• DOI: 10.1016/S0304-3940(98)00650-8

Regional brain protein synthesis was evaluated with positron emission tomography (PET) and L-(S-[
11C]methyl)methionine ([
11C]MET) in depressive patients, before and 3 h after an electroconvulsive shock (ECS), when energy supply is restored, and in healthy volunteers. Depressive patients presented apparent lower protein synthesis than normals, in agreement with known reduction of cerebral activity. In contrast, ECS resulted in a significant increase (56%,
P<0.05) in global cortical protein synthesis. This paradoxical hyperactivation of cellular protein metabolism in response to seizures and the fact that synaptic activity is further reduced after electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), may provide new insights for understanding the mechanism of action of ECT.