Moss H B, Yao J K
Center for Education and Drug Abuse Research, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, PA 15213, USA.
Psychiatry Res. 1996 Jun 1;62(3):203-11. doi: 10.1016/0165-1781(96)02880-6.
It is well-established that the secretion of the opioid neuropeptide beta-endorphin is perturbed by the administration of various drugs of abuse. Several investigators have speculated that variations in beta-endorphin secretory regulation may precede the development of a substance use disorder, and thus be a component of the liability for substance abuse. In order to test this hypothesis, we examined fasting, morning plasma concentrations of beta-endorphin and two catecholamine metabolites in prepubertal boys naive to drugs of abuse and at elevated familial risk for a substance use disorder (SA+), and in controls (SA-). Specifically, the dopaminergic metabolite homovanillic acid (pHVA), and the noradrenergic metabolite, 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy-phenylglycol (pMHPG) were measured. Between-group differences were not found for beta-endorphin, pHVA, or pMHPG. Similarly, such differences did not differentiate sons of fathers with Antisocial Personality Disorder and controls. However, regression analysis revealed that although both pHVA and pMHPG predicted beta-endorphin concentrations to similar degrees, the directions of influence were the opposite. pHVA was found to be positively associated with beta-endorphin while pMHPG was found to be negatively associated with beta-endorphin. No between-group differences in these relationships were found. The results suggest an opponent process in catecholaminergic regulation of beta-endorphin in humans, and are consistent with observations in the central nervous system of animal models.
众所周知，滥用各种药物会干扰阿片类神经肽β-内啡肽的分泌。一些研究人员推测，β-内啡肽分泌调节的变化可能先于物质使用障碍的发展，因此可能是物质滥用易感性的一个组成部分。为了验证这一假设，我们检测了青春期前未接触过滥用药物且物质使用障碍家族风险较高（SA+）的男孩以及对照组（SA-）在空腹状态下早晨血浆中β-内啡肽和两种儿茶酚胺代谢物的浓度。具体而言，检测了多巴胺能代谢物高香草酸（pHVA）和去甲肾上腺素能代谢物3-甲氧基-4-羟基苯乙二醇（pMHPG）。在β-内啡肽、pHVA或pMHPG方面未发现组间差异。同样，这些差异也无法区分患有反社会人格障碍的父亲的儿子与对照组。然而，回归分析显示，尽管pHVA和pMHPG对β-内啡肽浓度的预测程度相似，但影响方向相反。发现pHVA与β-内啡肽呈正相关，而pMHPG与β-内啡肽呈负相关。在这些关系中未发现组间差异。结果表明人类中儿茶酚胺能对β-内啡肽的调节存在拮抗过程，这与动物模型中枢神经系统中的观察结果一致。
