Bernstein H G, Stanarius A, Baumann B, Henning H, Krell D, Danos P, Falkai P, Bogerts B
Department of Psychiatry, University of Magdeburg, Germany.
Neuroscience. 1998 Apr;83(3):867-75. doi: 10.1016/s0306-4522(97)00461-2.
The neuroanatomical distribution of nitric oxide synthase-immunoreactive neurons was investigated in post mortem hypothalami of 10 patients suffering from schizophrenia, eight patients with depression and 13 matched control cases. Neuronal nitric oxide synthase containing nerve cells were detected in several hypothalamic nuclei including the medial preoptic region, the ventromedial, infundibular and suprachiasmatic nuclei and the lateral hypothalamus. The vast majority of hypothalamic nitric oxide synthase-immunoreactive neurons was found to be located in the paraventricular nucleus. Both magno and parvocellular paraventricular neurons contained the enzyme. A small subset of immunoreactive parvocellular paraventricular neurons co-expresses corticotropin-releasing hormone. The supraoptic nucleus did not contain nitric oxide synthase-immunoreactive neurons. Cell counts of paraventricular nitric oxide synthase-positive neurons in controls, schizophrenics and depressed patients revealed a statistically significant reduction of cell density in the right paraventricular nucleus of depressed patients and schizophrenics as compared to controls. The total amount of nitric oxide synthase-immunoreactive paraventricular neurons was smaller in depressive and schizophrenic patients than in normal cases. The putative pathophysiologic significance of the reduced expression of paraventricular nitric oxide synthase in depressive patients might be related to the supposed regulatory function of nitric oxide in the release of corticotropin-releasing hormone and arginine-vasopressin and/or oxytocin, which have been reported to be over-expressed in the so-called endogenous psychoses, especially in depression.
对10例精神分裂症患者、8例抑郁症患者以及13例相匹配的对照者的下丘脑进行尸检，研究一氧化氮合酶免疫反应性神经元的神经解剖分布。在几个下丘脑核团中检测到含有神经元型一氧化氮合酶的神经细胞，包括视前内侧区、腹内侧核、漏斗核、视交叉上核以及下丘脑外侧区。发现绝大多数下丘脑一氧化氮合酶免疫反应性神经元位于室旁核。室旁核的大细胞和小细胞神经元均含有该酶。一小部分免疫反应性室旁核小细胞神经元共表达促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素。视上核未检测到一氧化氮合酶免疫反应性神经元。对对照组、精神分裂症患者和抑郁症患者室旁核一氧化氮合酶阳性神经元进行细胞计数，结果显示，与对照组相比，抑郁症患者和精神分裂症患者右侧室旁核的细胞密度在统计学上显著降低。抑郁症患者和精神分裂症患者室旁核一氧化氮合酶免疫反应性神经元的总量低于正常病例。抑郁症患者室旁核一氧化氮合酶表达降低的假定病理生理意义可能与一氧化氮在促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素、精氨酸加压素和/或催产素释放中的调节功能有关，据报道，这些激素在所谓的内源性精神病，尤其是抑郁症中过度表达。
