Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30831543›Full record

ArticleJournal of affective disorders2019

Plasma serotonin levels are associated with antidepressant response to SSRIs.

Amanda Holck, Owen M Wolkowitz, Sindy H Mellon, Victor I Reus, J Craig Nelson, Åsa Westrin, Daniel Lindqvist

Open access · bronzeAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of affective disorders, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
48citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
6.7field-weighted citation impact, top 3% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

48 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 83 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  10. Neuroimmune pathophysiology of long COVID.Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences · 2025
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Amanda HolckLund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences, Psychiatry, Lund, Sweden.
Owen M WolkowitzDepartment of Psychiatry, University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Sindy H MellonDepartment of OB/GYN and Reproductive Sciences, University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Victor I ReusDepartment of Psychiatry, University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA, USA.
J Craig NelsonDepartment of Psychiatry, University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA, USA.
Åsa WestrinLund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences, Psychiatry, Lund, Sweden.
Daniel LindqvistLund University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences, Psychiatry, Lund, Sweden; Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, San Francisco, CA, USA. Electronic address: daniel.lindqvist@med.lu.se.
University of California, San Francisco · USLund University · SE

Funding

UCSF CLINICAL AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE INSTITUTEUL1RR024131 · NCRR · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · PI JOHNSTON, S. CLAIBORNE · 2006 to 2011
$111.2M
Cell Aging in Major DepressionR01MH083784 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · PI EPEL, ELISSA S., MELLON, SYNTHIA H · 2010 to 2020
$6.7M
NCRR NIH HHS UL1 RR024131NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH083784
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundLess than half of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) respond to their first antidepressant trial. Our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) remains poor, and there is no reliable method of predicting treatment response.

methodsThirty-seven MDD subjects and 41 healthy controls, somatically healthy and medication-free for at least six weeks, were recruited, and plasma serotonin (5-HT) levels were assessed at baseline. Twenty-six of the MDD subjects were then treated in an open-label manner with clinically appropriate doses of sertraline for 8 weeks, after which plasma 5-HT levels were again assessed. Response to treatment was defined as an improvement of 50% or more on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale.

resultsNon-responders to sertraline treatment had significantly lower pre-treatment 5-HT levels compared to both healthy controls and responders (F = 4.4, p = 0.004 and p = 0.036, respectively). There was a significant decrease in 5-HT levels over treatment in all MDD subjects (t = 6.2, p = 0.000003). The decrease was significantly more prominent in responders compared to non-responders (t = 2.1, p = 0.047). There was no significant difference in post-treatment 5-HT levels between responders and non-responders. LIMITATIONS: The study had a modest sample size. 5-HT levels in plasma may not reflect 5-HT levels in the brain.

conclusionsThe results indicate that SSRI response may be facilitated by adequate baseline plasma 5-HT content and that successful SSRI treatment is associated with greater decreases in circulating 5-HT. Plasma 5-HT content may be a predictor of SSRI treatment outcome. Potential underlying mechanisms are discussed.

Indexed as

AdultAntidepressive AgentsFemaleHumansMajor Depressive DisorderMaleSelective Serotonin Reuptake InhibitorsSerotoninSertralineTreatment OutcomeAntidepressive AgentsSelective Serotonin Reuptake InhibitorsSerotoninSertralineAntidepressantMajor depressive disorderSelective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)SerotoninTreatment response

Identifiers

PMID30831543
PMCPMC6699768
OpenAlexW2916766294

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.