Unchanged Density of Caudate Nucleus Dopamine Uptake Sites in Depressed Suicide Victims

In this post-mortem study, the binding of the ligand 3HWIN 35,428 to dopamine uptake sites in the caudate nucleus was investigated in 13 depressed suicide victims & 19 controls. The were no differences in Bmax or Kd between the suicide group & controls. Subdividing the suicide group into subgroups regarding the presence of major depression, antidepressant medication, & suicide method, respectively, did not yield any differences. Previous fidings regarding reduced CSF HVA in suicidal depression & indications of striatal dopaminergic biochemical & receptor changes in depression seem, according to the present study, not to be reflected by alterations in density or affinity of dopamine uptake sites in depressed suicide victims. (28 refs.) JA