Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients often have sleep and
mood disorders.
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (
BDNF) and proBDNF were shown to modulate interactions between the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract, possibly contributing to psychological issues. Anti-
tumor necrosis factor (TNF)
therapy in IBD can alter
BDNF expression and further affect the brain-gut axis. Eighty IBD patients and 44 healthy controls (HCs) were enrolled and divided into subsets based on disease activity and condition (
ulcerative colitis (UC)/
Crohn's disease (CD)). Questionnaires evaluating sleep parameters and depression as well as venous blood were collected. The IBD group had a lower expression of
BDNF mRNA, but higher proBDNF and
BDNF protein concentration than HCs. The UC group had a higher
BDNF protein concentration than the CD.
BDNF protein was positively correlated to sleep efficiency in the IBD group. Depression severity was associated positively with
BDNF mRNA and negatively with
BDNF protein in the remission group. Anti-TNF
therapy enhanced
BDNF mRNA expression. The
BDNF pathway might be disturbed in IBD, linking it to
sleep disorders and depression. Systemic
inflammation could be the main cause of this disruption.
BDNF mRNA is a more reliable parameter than
protein due to numerous post-translational modifications.