Department of Neurobiology, Institute of Neuroscience, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
Vitam Horm. 2010;82:339-65. doi: 10.1016/S0083-6729(10)82018-7.
The neuropeptides corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and arginine vasopressin (AVP) are crucially involved in the pathogenesis of depression. The close correlation between the etiology of depression and dysregulation of the stress responses is based upon a hyperactivity of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. CRH neurons in the paraventricular nucleus are the motor of the HPA-axis. Centrally released CRH, AVP, and increased levels of cortisol all contribute to the signs and symptoms of depression. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the CRH and AVP receptor genes are associated with the risk for depression. Activation of the HPA-axis is generally regarded to be the final common pathway of the pathogenesis of depression. Sex hormones are crucially involved in the regulation of CRH gene expression. The decreased activity of the biological clock, the suprachiasmatic nucleus, as indicated by its lower AVP expression, is the basis for the disturbed rhythms in depression. Both similarities and differences are found in the activity changes in the CRH and AVP systems in depressive disorders and depression in Alzheimer's disease.
神经肽促肾上腺皮质释放激素（CRH）和精氨酸加压素（AVP）在抑郁症的发病机制中起着至关重要的作用。抑郁症的病因与应激反应失调之间的密切相关性基于下丘脑-垂体-肾上腺（HPA）轴的过度活跃。室旁核中的 CRH 神经元是 HPA 轴的动力。中枢释放的 CRH、AVP 和皮质醇水平升高均导致抑郁症的体征和症状。CRH 和 AVP 受体基因中的单核苷酸多态性与抑郁症的风险相关。HPA 轴的激活通常被认为是抑郁症发病机制的最终共同途径。性激素在 CRH 基因表达的调节中起着关键作用。生物节律钟（视交叉上核）活动的减少，表现为 AVP 表达降低，是抑郁症中节律紊乱的基础。在抑郁症和阿尔茨海默病中的抑郁症中，CRH 和 AVP 系统的活性变化既有相似之处，也有不同之处。
