Vol 6 n° 2 - Neuroplasticity
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uring  the  past  two  decades, anatomical  sub- strates associated with the neuropathology of mood dis- orders have been revealed through both in vivo neuro- imaging studies and morphological and neurochemical studies on postmortem brain tissue.While neuroimaging studies have given significant insight into the gross mor- phological  location  of  dysfunctional  brain  regions  in depression, the neurochemical, cellular, and molecular features of depression are being unlocked by studies in postmortem brain tissue. Novel studies at the microscopic level are establishing that the mood disorders are associated with abnormali- ties in cell morphology and distribution, in addition to the long-recognized  neurochemical  abnormalities.  Major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorder (BPD) have been examined in postmortem brain tissue by sev- eral laboratories in the past 6 years. Cell-counting stud- ies report changes in the density and size of both neurons and  glia  in  a  number  of  frontolimbic  brain  regions, including dorsolateral prefrontal, orbitofrontal, and ante- rior cingulate cortex, and the amygdala and hippocam- pus. These studies in postmortem brain tissue confirm and extend structural and functional neuroimaging stud- ies that reveal volumetric and metabolic changes in the same frontolimbic brain regions in the same disorders. Convergence of cellular changes at the microscopic level with neuroimaging changes detected in vivo provides a compelling integration of clinical and basic research for disentangling the pathophysiology of depression. Regionally localized and cell type–specific changes in neuronal and glial cytoarchitecture recently identified in 1 8 5 C l i n i c a l   r e s e a r c h D Copyright © 2004 LLS SAS.  All rights reserved www.dialogues-cns.org Cellular abnormalities in depression: evidence from postmortem brain tissue Craig A. Stockmeier, PhD; Grazyna Rajkowska, PhD Keywords: major depression; bipolar disorder; postmortem brain; glia; neuron; neuropathology Author affiliations: The University of Mississippi Medical Center, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Jackson, Miss, USA Address for correspondence: Craig Stockmeier, PhD, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2500 N State St, Box 127, Jackson, MS 39216, USA (e-mail: cstockmeier@psychiatry.umsmed.edu) During the past two decades, in vivo neuroimaging stud- ies have permitted significant insights into the general location of dysfunctional brain regions in depression. In parallel and often intersecting ways, neuroanatomical, pharmacological, and biochemical studies of postmortem brain tissue are permitting new insights into the patho- physiology of depression. In addition to long-recognized neurochemical abnormalities in depression, novel studies at the microscopic level support the contention that mood disorders are associated with abnormalities in cell mor- phology and distribution. In the past 6 years, cell-counting studies have identified changes in the density and size of both neurons and glia in a number of frontolimbic brain regions, including dorsolateral prefrontal, orbitofrontal, and anterior cingulate cortex, and the amygdala and hip- pocampus. Convergence of cellular changes at the micro- scopic level with neuroimaging changes detected in vivo provides a compelling integration of clinical and basic research for disentangling the pathophysiology of depres- sion.  The  ultimate  integration  of  these  two  research approaches will occur with premortem longitudinal clini- cal studies on well-characterized patients linked to post- mortem studies of the same subjects.   © 2004, LLS SAS Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2004;6:185-197.