CREB-phosphorylation in the course of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)

The cyclic AMP-response element binding protein (CREB) is an essential element in signal transduction pathways important for cellular resilience, synaptic plasticity and memory storage. We have previously demonstrated that the increase in CREB phosphorylation in peripheral blood T-lymphocytes is significantly associated with clinical improvement in patients treated with antidepressants and/or psychotherapy. In the present study, we focused on patients treated with ECT. 38 patients meeting DSM-IV criteria for major depressive episode were recruited into this 3-week study. Patients received ECT twice weekly. After 3 weeks of ECT 14 patients responded (reduction of ≥ 50% of baseline HAMD), 3 switched to hypomanic states and 18 patients did not respond to treatment (3 patients discontinued ECT after 1–2 sessions and therefore were regarded as drop-outs). Results suggest the increase of CREB-phosphorylation is associated with response to treatment. But there are discrepancies to our previous studies that will be discussed in detail.