TY - JOUR
T1 - Elevated cerebrospinal fluid corticotropin-releasing factor in Tourette's syndrome
T2 - Comparison to obsessive compulsive disorder and normal controls
AU - Chappell, Phillip
AU - Leckman, James
AU - Goodman, Wayne
AU - Bissette, Garth
AU - Pauls, David
AU - Anderson, George
AU - Riddle, Mark
AU - Scahill, Lawrence
AU - McDougle, Christopher
AU - Cohen, Donald
PY - 1996/5/1
Y1 - 1996/5/1
N2 - Stress- and anxiety-related fluctuations in tic severity are cardinal features of Tourette's syndrome (TS), and there is evidence for involvement of noradrenergic mechanisms in the pathophysiology and treatment of the disorder. To examine further the pathobiology of this enhanced vulnerability to stress and anxiety, we measured central activity of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) in patients with TS and the related condition, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Lumbar cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was obtained in a standardized fashion for measurement of CRF from 21 medication-free outpatients with TS, 20 with OCD, and 29 healthy controls. The TS patients had significantly higher levels of CSF CRF than both the normal controls and the OCD patients. However, there was no difference in CSF CRF between the OCD patients and the normal controls. Group differences in CSF CRF were unrelated to current clinical ratings of depression, anxiety, tics, and obsessive compulsive behaviors. Although the functional significance of this finding remains to be elucidated, these results are consistent with the hypothesis that stress-related neurobiological mechanisms may play a role in the pathology of TS.
AB - Stress- and anxiety-related fluctuations in tic severity are cardinal features of Tourette's syndrome (TS), and there is evidence for involvement of noradrenergic mechanisms in the pathophysiology and treatment of the disorder. To examine further the pathobiology of this enhanced vulnerability to stress and anxiety, we measured central activity of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) in patients with TS and the related condition, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Lumbar cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was obtained in a standardized fashion for measurement of CRF from 21 medication-free outpatients with TS, 20 with OCD, and 29 healthy controls. The TS patients had significantly higher levels of CSF CRF than both the normal controls and the OCD patients. However, there was no difference in CSF CRF between the OCD patients and the normal controls. Group differences in CSF CRF were unrelated to current clinical ratings of depression, anxiety, tics, and obsessive compulsive behaviors. Although the functional significance of this finding remains to be elucidated, these results are consistent with the hypothesis that stress-related neurobiological mechanisms may play a role in the pathology of TS.
KW - CRF
KW - Cerebrospinal fluid
KW - Norepinephrine
KW - Obsessive compulsive disorder
KW - Stress
KW - Tourette syndrome
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U2 - 10.1016/0006-3223(95)00221-9
DO - 10.1016/0006-3223(95)00221-9
M3 - Article
C2 - 8731518
AN - SCOPUS:0029888904
SN - 0006-3223
VL - 39
SP - 776
EP - 783
JO - Biological psychiatry
JF - Biological psychiatry
IS - 9
ER -