Bath Kevin G, Lee Francis S
Department of Psychiatry, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, 1300 York Avenue, Box 244, New York, NY 10021, USA.
Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci. 2006 Mar;6(1):79-85. doi: 10.3758/cabn.6.1.79.
Neurotrophins, such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), are a unique family of polypeptide growth factors that influence differentiation and survival of neurons in the developing nervous system. In adults, BDNF is important in regulating synaptic plasticity and connectivity in the brain. Recently, a common single-nucleotide polymorphism in the human BDNF gene, resulting in avaline to methionine substitution in the prodomain (Val66Met), has been shown to lead to memory impairment and susceptibility to neuropsychiatric disorders. An understanding of how this naturally occurring polymorphism affects behavior, anatomy, and cognition in adults is an important first step in linking genetic alterations in the neurotrophin system to definable biological outcomes in humans. We review the recent literature linking this BDNF polymorphism to cognitive impairment in the context of in vitro and transgenic animal studies that have established BDNF's central role in neuronal functioning in the adult brain.
神经营养因子，如脑源性神经营养因子（BDNF），是一类独特的多肽生长因子家族，它们影响发育中的神经系统中神经元的分化和存活。在成年人中，BDNF对调节大脑中的突触可塑性和连接性很重要。最近，人类BDNF基因中一种常见的单核苷酸多态性，导致前结构域中缬氨酸替换为甲硫氨酸（Val66Met），已被证明会导致记忆障碍和易患神经精神疾病。了解这种自然发生的多态性如何影响成年人的行为、解剖结构和认知，是将神经营养因子系统中的基因改变与人类可明确的生物学结果联系起来的重要第一步。我们在体外和转基因动物研究的背景下回顾了将这种BDNF多态性与认知障碍联系起来的最新文献，这些研究已经确立了BDNF在成人大脑神经元功能中的核心作用。
