Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), as the most abundant growth factor in the
brain, has several functions in neural development and regeneration (
1
). This factor may be involved in mood disorders, cognitive problems, and chronic
fatigue syndrome (
1
,
2
,
3
). Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is thought to cause neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as
mood disturbances, fatigue, and impaired physical and mental aspects of quality of
life independent of the disease activity, or cirrhosis (
4
,
5
). In one study, patients with HCV had lower physical health scores but similar mental
health scores compared with patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) (
5
). Many authors have argued that these symptoms might be related to using interferon,
drug abuse, or disease chronicity (
4
,
6
), while others believe that these symptoms may reflect some kind of brain involvement
in patients with HCV (
7
).To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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References
- Brain-derived neurotrophic factor.Growth Factors. 2004; 22: 123-131
- Critical role of brain-derived neurotrophic factor in mood disorders.Brain Res Rev. 2004; 45: 104-114
- Chronic fatigue syndrome and the central nervous system.J Int Med Res. 2008; 36: 867-874
- Quality of life considerations for patients with chronic hepatitis C.J Viral Hepat. 2009; 16: 605-611
- Chronic hepatitis C virus infection causes a significant reduction in quality of life in the absence of cirrhosis.Hepatology. 1998; 27: 209-212
- Tobacco and other factors have a negative impact on quality of life in hepatitis C patients [published online ahead of print August 15].J Viral Hepat. 2010;
- Evidence for a cerebral effect of the hepatitis C virus.Lancet. 2001; 358: 38-39
- Human and rat hepatic stellate cells express neurotrophins and neurotrophin receptors.Hepatology. 2001; 33: 148-158
- Intrahepatic expression of the hepatic stellate cell marker fibroblast activation protein correlates with the degree of fibrosis in hepatitis C virus infection.Liver. 2002; 22: 93-101
- Deterioration of health-related quality of life and fatigue in patients with chronic hepatitis C: Association with demographic factors, inflammatory activity, and degree of fibrosis.J Hepatol. 2008; 49: 923-929
- Biopsychosocial predictors of fatigue in chronic hepatitis C.J Psychosom Res. 2005; 58: 173-178
- Relationship of brain MRI abnormalities and physical functional status in chronic fatigue syndrome.Int J Neurosci. 2001; 107: 1-6
Article info
Publication history
Published online: March 24, 2011
Footnotes
The authors reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.
Identification
Copyright
© 2011 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
