N 4 (195) 2025. P. 27–34

LIPID PEROXIDATION, ACTIVITY OF MATRIX METALLOPROTEINASE-9, AND CIRCULATING LEVELS OF BRAIN-DERIVED NEUROTROPHIC FACTOR DEPENDING ON THE DURATION OF THE DISEASE IN PATIENTS WITH PARANOID SCHIZOPHRENIA

I. R. Romash

Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical University, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine

DOI 10.32782/2226-2008-2025-4-4

The research aims to analyze the activity of matrix metalloproteinase-9 indicators (MMP-9), circulating brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels depending on the duration of the disease in patients with paranoid schizophrenia.

Materials and methods. The research included 320 patients, namely 20 patients with “Primary Psychotic Episode” (Comparison Group) and 300 patients with a diagnosis of “Paranoid Schizophrenia” (Study Group): 60 of them suffered from this disease from 3 to 5 years (Subgroup I); 60 individuals – from 6 to 10 years (Subgroup II); 60 patients – from 11 to 15 (Subgroup III); 60 of them – from 16 to 20 (Subgroup IV); and 60 patients – from 21 years and more (Subgroup V). We assessed the severity of the underlying disease using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. We evaluated the intensity of oxidative stress (OS) by measuring the MDA index. Additionally, we determined the content of MMP-9 and BDNF in the blood serum of all patients using ELISA.

Results. Analysis of the presented results showed that a statistically significant increase in malondialdehyde was observed in all Subgroups, except the first one and indicated an increase in lipid peroxidation processes in patients with schizophrenia for over 5 years. The level of MMP-9 was also significantly increased in patients of the Study Subgroups compared to the Comparison group. Simultaneously, we observed a statistically significant decrease in BDNF values in Subgroups II–V. The degree of BDNF decrease increased with increasing duration of the underlying disease and, therefore, the age of the patients. Thus, the study showed that the levels of MMP-9, BDNF, and MDA might be considered potential biomarkers for assessing the severity and predicting the course of schizophrenia.

Keywords: schizophrenia, oxidative stress (OS), malondialdehyde (MDA), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF).

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