1. Cognitive and Serotonergic Vulnerability to Depression: Convergent Findings.
- Author
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Booij, Linda and Van der Does, A. J. Willem
- Subjects
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MENTAL depression , *COGNITIVE ability , *REACTION time , *TRYPTOPHAN , *BIOMARKERS , *PEOPLE with mental illness , *PATHOLOGICAL psychology - Abstract
Cognitive reactivity (CR) is a psychological vulnerability marker of depression, whereas response to acute tryptophan depletion (ATD; a serotonergic challenge procedure) is a biological vulnerability marker. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between these markers. Thirty-nine remitted depressed patients participated in 2 ATD sessions in a double-blind crossover design. CR, assessed prior to the ATD sessions, predicted depressive response to high-dose ATD. CR also diminished the effects of 2 known predictors of ATD response: gender and residual symptoms. Neuroticism and behavioral inhibition were unrelated to ATD response. CR is associated with an increased sensitivity to reductions of serotonin concentrations. These findings present a small step toward unifying cognitive and neurobiological theories of depression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2007
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