PMID- 16869232 OWN - NLM STAT- MEDLINE DCOM- 20060919 LR - 20220318 IS - 1530-7026 (Print) IS - 1530-7026 (Linking) VI - 6 IP - 1 DP - 2006 Mar TI - Variant BDNF (Val66Met) impact on brain structure and function. PG - 79-85 AB - Neurotrophins, such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), are a unique family of polypeptide growth factors that influence differentiation and survival of neurons in the developing nervous system. In adults, BDNF is important in regulating synaptic plasticity and connectivity in the brain. Recently, a common single-nucleotide polymorphism in the human BDNF gene, resulting in avaline to methionine substitution in the prodomain (Val66Met), has been shown to lead to memory impairment and susceptibility to neuropsychiatric disorders. An understanding of how this naturally occurring polymorphism affects behavior, anatomy, and cognition in adults is an important first step in linking genetic alterations in the neurotrophin system to definable biological outcomes in humans. We review the recent literature linking this BDNF polymorphism to cognitive impairment in the context of in vitro and transgenic animal studies that have established BDNF's central role in neuronal functioning in the adult brain. FAU - Bath, Kevin G AU - Bath KG AD - Department of Psychiatry, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, 1300 York Avenue, Box 244, New York, NY 10021, USA. kgb2001@med.cornell.edu FAU - Lee, Francis S AU - Lee FS LA - eng PT - Journal Article PT - Review PL - United States TA - Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci JT - Cognitive, affective & behavioral neuroscience JID - 101083946 RN - 0 (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor) RN - AE28F7PNPL (Methionine) RN - HG18B9YRS7 (Valine) SB - IM MH - Animals MH - Brain/*anatomy & histology/*physiology MH - Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor/*genetics MH - Humans MH - Methionine/*genetics MH - Neuronal Plasticity/genetics MH - Valine/*genetics RF - 51 EDAT- 2006/07/28 09:00 MHDA- 2006/09/20 09:00 CRDT- 2006/07/28 09:00 PHST- 2006/07/28 09:00 [pubmed] PHST- 2006/09/20 09:00 [medline] PHST- 2006/07/28 09:00 [entrez] AID - 10.3758/cabn.6.1.79 [doi] PST - ppublish SO - Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci. 2006 Mar;6(1):79-85. doi: 10.3758/cabn.6.1.79.