Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41819248›Full record

ArticleProgress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry2026

Synaptic density in the hippocampus of depressed patients: A quantitative electron microscopic study.

Abigél Sebők-Tornai, Dávid Csabai, Péter Szocsics, Péter Gombás, Justin A Cobb, Gouri J Mahajan, Craig A Stockmeier, Boldizsár Czéh

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In one paragraph

Article in Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
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

8 authors.

Abigél Sebők-TornaiNeurobiology of Stress Research Group, Szentágothai János Research Centre, University of Pécs, Ifjúság útja 20, Pécs H-7624, Hungary; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical School, University of Pécs, Ifjúság útja 13, Pécs H-7624, Hungary.
Dávid CsabaiNeurobiology of Stress Research Group, Szentágothai János Research Centre, University of Pécs, Ifjúság útja 20, Pécs H-7624, Hungary; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical School, University of Pécs, Ifjúság útja 13, Pécs H-7624, Hungary.
Péter SzocsicsHuman Brain Research Laboratory, HUN-REN Institute of Experimental Medicine, Budapest H-1083, Hungary; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Semmelweis University, Budapest H-1085, Hungary.
Péter GombásDepartment of Pathology, St. Borbála Hospital, Tatabánya H-2800, Hungary.
Justin A CobbDepartment of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS 39216, United States.
Gouri J MahajanDepartment of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS 39216, United States.
Craig A StockmeierDepartment of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS 39216, United States.
Boldizsár CzéhNeurobiology of Stress Research Group, Szentágothai János Research Centre, University of Pécs, Ifjúság útja 20, Pécs H-7624, Hungary; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical School, University of Pécs, Ifjúság útja 13, Pécs H-7624, Hungary. Electronic address: czeh.boldizsar@pte.hu.

Funding

VOLTAGE-GATED CA CHANNELS &NMDA RECEPTOR SUBUNITS IN LC OF ALCOHOLICSP20RR017701 · NCRR · UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MEDICAL CENTER · PI RAJKOWSKA, GRAZYNA · 2002 to 2011
$20.2M
Center for Psychiatric NeuroscienceP30GM103328 · NIGMS · UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MED CTR · PI STOCKMEIER, CRAIG ALLEN · 2013 to 2017
$5.5M
Postmortem Human Brain Collection (Supplement to MH67996)R01MH067996 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MEDICAL CENTER · PI STOCKMEIER, CRAIG ALLEN · 2004 to 2007
$1.2M
NCRR NIH HHS P20 RR017701NIGMS NIH HHS P30 GM103328NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH067996
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSynaptic dysfunction or loss of synapses is implicated in the pathophysiology of major depressive disorder (MDD). Recent in vivo functional neuroimaging studies document reduced number of synapses in the brains of MDD patients. Here, we performed a post-mortem quantitative electron microscopic study to confirm the putative synaptic loss in the hippocampus of patients with depression.

methodsHippocampal tissue from subjects with MDD (n = 11, aged 19-79 years) and psychiatrically healthy controls (n = 17, aged 18-77 years) were investigated. A systematic quantitative analysis was performed to determine the synaptic densities based on unbiased counting principles. Neuropil of the three main subareas of the hippocampal formation (dentate gyrus, CA3, and CA1) were examined.

resultsHippocampal synaptic densities were comparable between control and depressed subjects. The average density of hippocampal synapses was 3.6 ± 0.2/μm LIMITATIONS: The sample size of the cohorts was relatively small. Only one segment of the rostral hippocampal body was analyzed.

conclusionsOur study provides further evidence that synaptic changes may contribute to the pathophysiology of MDD. We did not find the expected widespread synapse loss, instead a region-specific reduction was observed only in a subset of patients. The methodological limitations of our study may explain the contradiction between the results of in vivo neuroimaging data and the present post-mortem findings.

Indexed as

HippocampusMajor Depressive DisorderSynapsesAdolescentAdultAgedFemaleHumansMaleMicroscopy, ElectronMiddle AgedYoung AdultAgingCA3Hippocampal volumeMajor depressive disorderSynapse lossSynapse number

Identifiers

PMID41819248
PMCPMC13276975

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

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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 Socratic graph.