RESUMO
Delta-sleep-inducing peptide (DSIP), vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), peptide YY (PYY) and somatostatin (SOM) were assayed with specific radioimmunological methods in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of healthy volunteers, 12 patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), 11 patients with multi-infarct dementia (MID) and 10 patients with normal-pressure hydrocephalus (NPH). Patients with NPH were reinvestigated 3 months after a ventriculoperitoneal shunt operation. DSIP, PYY and SOM levels in CSF were decreased in patients with NPH compared to controls. The CSF concentration of SOM was also significantly reduced in patients with AD. No correlations were found between the degree of dementia in any of the illnesses and the CSF concentrations of the peptides. The concentration of DSIP, VIP and SOM increased significantly in parallel to the clinical improvement after the shunt operation in NPH patients.
Assuntos
Demência/líquido cefalorraquidiano , Hidrocefalia de Pressão Normal/líquido cefalorraquidiano , Neuropeptídeos/líquido cefalorraquidiano , Idoso , Idoso de 80 Anos ou mais , Peptídeo Indutor do Sono Delta/líquido cefalorraquidiano , Hormônios Gastrointestinais/líquido cefalorraquidiano , Humanos , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Peptídeo YY , Peptídeos/líquido cefalorraquidiano , Radioimunoensaio , Somatostatina/líquido cefalorraquidiano , Peptídeo Intestinal Vasoativo/líquido cefalorraquidianoRESUMO
The related central nervous system peptides neuropeptide Y and peptide YY have been found to be among the most potent endogenous stimulants of feeding behavior. We measured these neuropeptides in cerebrospinal fluid to determine whether they contributed to the pathophysiologic characteristics of anorexia and bulimia nervosa. Cerebrospinal fluid neuropeptide Y concentrations were significantly elevated in underweight anorectic patients and in many of the anorectic patients studied at intervals after weight restoration. These levels normalized in long-term weight-restored anorectic patients who had a return of normal menstrual cycles. Increased neuropeptide Y activity may contribute to several characteristic disturbances in anorexia, including menstrual dysregulation. Cerebrospinal fluid peptide YY concentrations were significantly elevated in normal-weight bulimic patients abstinent from pathological eating behavior for a month compared with themselves when actively bingeing and vomiting or compared with healthy volunteers. Increased peptide YY activity may contribute to a drive to overfeed in normal-weight bulimic patients.
